Our World
by FairyPrime
Summary: What we perceive to be our own world is a lie. We are only one part of an unbalanced equation. What do you do when you find a half-dead wolf in your kitchen? Lucy discovers the answer and is thrust into a world she never thought she would be a part of. I do not own Fairy Tail. Supernatural AU
1. Act I, Ch I

Chapter 1

What we perceive to be our own world is a lie. We are only one part of an unbalanced equation.

* * *

"Hold him down, Loke!"

A pained grunt escaped said man. "_Working on it_, Princess." Loke tightened his hold around the black mass of fur in his arms. "Why don't we just sedate him?"

The black mass, which happened to actually be a black-furred wolf, did not take kindly to his words and thrashed harder. The ginger-haired man tightened his grip around the struggling wolf, attempting to pin its forelegs to its chest while keeping a watchful eye on the blonde at the wolf's flank.

A pair of surgical forceps in hand, Lucy ignored the other man in favor of prodding at the bullet wound in the wolf's side. A steady flow of blood had already begun to pool on her kitchen floor and stained the blue scrubs she wore.

"Hang in there…Coal." She murmured to the wolf. Seeing her seat herself on the animal's hind legs, Loke tightened his hold right before the ends of the forceps disappeared into the wound. To Loke's surprise, the wolf didn't as much as whimper, only letting out a pained grunt as Lucy twisted the surgical tool around, searching.

With a gasp of triumph, Lucy sat up from her hunched position, bullet removed. Dropping the bullet into a tin plate, she took little notice of the bullet's odd silver color before she began cleaning the wound with a warm towel.

Crisis averted, Loke couldn't help but chime in, "Coal? You couldn't come up with something more interesting? Like, blackberry?" _Coal_ swung his head back into the unsuspecting man's chin, eliciting a cry of pain. Lucy rolled her eyes in exasperation as she began bandaging the wolf, wondering how things could have ended up like this.

* * *

**10 Hours Earlier**

Natsu was going to kill that stupid Ice Princess.

Never mind that he should have known better than to consume baked goods belonging to a particular red-head, but alarm bells should have been ringing in his head when he agreed to a dare from _Gray _of all people. What should have been an easy enough task to complete as punishment –traveling down to the human town, Magnolia, for a weird mix of herbs for Porly – was beginning to turn out horribly. Now he found himself being chased through the Fiore Forest by a bunch of Phantom Vampires. Speaking of which…

"Where you think you're goin' Fairy Mutt?" A figure dropped from the trees above in front of Natsu, halting his run. Natsu wasn't worried, in fact, he grinned when five other vampires moved in to surround him, cracking his knuckles in glee. All of them were dressed in dark garb marked with the Phantom emblem.

"Erza never said I couldn't bash some heads in while on this stupid shopping trip." He tightened the strap of his satchel so that it wouldn't slip off and dropped down to a fighting stance, fists raised. "I won't even need to transform to take down a bunch of grunts, like you. It'll be good exercise."

The one who first spoke, and leader of the group –dubbed Idiot #1 in Natsu's mind–growled in anger. "Tear him to shreds!" The vampires charged.

Natsu lashed out with a flying fist, ignoring the sound of someone's nose cracking, and dealt out a flying-spinning kick, knocking one to the snowy ground, unconscious. The glint of metal shined brightly in the mid-day sky, and his left eye was blinded for a moment before he was using the chest of the one whose nose he broke as a spring-board, back-flipping off the guy's chest to twist mid-air and land behind the two perpetrators who tried to stab him in the back. Natsu grabbed the back of their jackets and flung them through the air and into the trunks of trees meters away. They slumped to the ground, out cold.

Mentally tallying the number he felled, Natsu didn't hear the sound of the safety of a gun being released before a shot rang out.

Pain radiated in his side. He didn't need to look to know that the bullet was still lodged inside and that it was made of _silver. _It wouldn't kill him, but it still hurt like _hell._

Pivoting, he found the leader of the group with a gun in hand. The sneer that adorned his face and gleam in his red eyes didn't hide that he believed to have won. His twisted smile soon turned shaky as Natsu began to walk towards him.

The hand holding the silver pistol shook in fear. "Th-that's not…POSSIBLE! You should be dead! I used a silver bullet! Wh-why aren't you dead?!" He screamed.

Natsu didn't bother answering him, the topic of _what _he was wasn't brought up often, if at all –not even with the family he had found in Fairy Tail. They had accepted him for who he was and continued to claim that his…genetics would never bother them or scare them away. He wasn't too sure about that.

The guy was so scared, he didn't even bother to move as Natsu walked right up to him, fisting the vampire's shirt in his hands. "I'm a member of Fairy Tail. We ain't easy to kill."

"Master Jose won't let you get away with this! Your pack's as good as dead once he hears about this!" He clawed helplessly at the hand clutching his shirt, fangs flashing.

Moving in until their noses were almost touching, Natsu's voice lowered to a menacing growl. "Bring it." Natsu head-butted the vampire, rendering him unconscious.

Natsu looked around at the bodies around him…one was missing. The sudden scream that pierced the bitter air and the familiar, but pungent, smell that greeted him made him growl low in his throat.

Turning, onyx eyes narrowed at the sight they met with.

Donned in only white balloon pants, the new arrival remained shirtless to show off a familiar tattoo on his right pectoral: Tartaros. He held the remaining member of the Phantom Lord hunting group in a headlock, remaining unfazed as she scratched at his forearms for freedom. "Well, well, well. How long's it been, brother –?"

"Don't call me that." Natsu snarled, fists clenching.

"–a hundred years? Thousand? You're getting sloppy in your old age." The figure perused the carnage around them, taking note of the merely unconscious Phantom Lord members.

"What do you want, Jackal?"

Jackal's mouth spread in a gleeful smile full of sharp teeth. "To send a message." He wrenched the girl's head to the side before sinking his teeth deep into her neck. In the span of mere seconds, her screams and struggles were reduced to mere gurgles and twitches. When he was finally sated Jackal punched a hole through the girl's chest, tearing out her heart before throwing the carcass aside. Natsu flinched.

Catching the movement, Jackal smiled wide before making his way over to where Natsu stood, face and chest splattered in red blood, before offering the heart up to his face.

Jackal frowned in mock disappointment when he was met with no reaction. "You still on your 'diet'? You're no fun." Taking a bite out of the organ like one would an apple, Jackal continued, "Zeref wants his experiment back." He cast the bitten heart aside and spit to the side with a grimace.

Natsu scoffed before turning to leave. "I'm not going back there. Tell your master to find another guinea pig."

If possible, Jackal's smile widened even further. "He also said we were allowed to drag you back."

Natsu wasn't able to move out of the way before the transformed wolf jumped on his back, tearing its claws through his clothes and into flesh. He roared in pain before dropping to the ground and rolling, hoping to dislodge the mustard yellow canine.

Rolling to his feet, Natsu threw his satchel to the side before discarding his vest. He barely felt the Change take over as his adrenaline and heart rate increased. The colors of the forest glowed and accentuated like illuminations, smells and sounds around him becoming that much more distinct and known.

He didn't have much time to appreciate the advantages of being in his wolf skin before Jackal was onto him again. The tumbled through the snow in a tangle of limbs and teeth. Jackal scratched along Natsu's underbelly only to rear back as teeth sank into his neck.

Even as Jackal kicked and scratched, Natsu refused to let up on his grip and only bit down harder. In a stroke of luck, Jackal kicked against the bullet wound in Natsu's side causing him to wince and loosen his hold for only a second. That second was the only opening Jackal needed and he twisted out of Natsu's hold and threw his body weight against him. The tackle took Natsu off guard and Jackal took the advantage to swipe at Natsu's face in an attempt to blind him. Natsu moved out of the way, but not before claws caught the side of his snout.

Jackal ducked under Natsu's retaliating swipe to sink his teeth into the black wolf's hind leg. The snapping of bone echoed in the surrounding forest followed by a pained howl.

The white of bone was a large contrast to the dark fur of Natsu's pelt as he lay in the snow, Jackal sauntering around him in a circle. "Jeez. Being among those pesky fairies has made you weak, brother. Are they all as weak as you? What does Zeref see in you, I wonder?" He stopped walking as a thought reached him before spinning to look the black wolf in the face. "How bout' you tell me where your little camp ground is, hmm? What do you think Zeref will reward me if I bring back you _and_ the heads of your little pack?"

Natsu growled at the mere thought of this monster being anywhere near his family and lunged for Jackal's jugular. Holding down the yellow wolf's shoulders with his front paws for leverage as he latched on and _pulled_. Tendons and muscles snapped before the veins and arteries in Jackal's neck were torn and wrenched from his body. Blood sprayed in a miniature fountain from the wolf's neck as he convulsed, eyes wide.

Natsu stood above the body, blood dripping from his maw. _'Don't think you can ever threaten my family and get away with it.'_

Satisfied, Natsu half-limped, half-dragged, his body back to his bag. He was too wounded to think about transforming back, the Change might cause more harm to his already battered body than good and he'd already caused Wendy and Porly enough grief from his previous scuffle.

Foregoing his discarded clothes, Natsu picked up his bag and continued on towards the human town. He could steal clothes to cover himself when the time came to change back.

* * *

Natsu was getting tired of walking. His left side, all the way from the flank to the end of the leg, was a bleeding mess. It didn't help that he had yet to stop and properly tend to it since his fight with Jackal, the bastard. He almost wished he could bring the stupid half-breed back to life and kill him again, slowly.

He was tired, thirsty, and _hungry_! Oh, so, hungry! The bottom of his belly chose that moment to make itself known once more with a large and unhelpful growl.

_Shut up._ He thought to himself.

As if fate was frowning upon him, the slope he was walking along decided to collapse beneath him. Snow swept down the side of the hill in a mini avalanche, taking the black wolf with it.

Tumbling end-over-end Natsu finally rolled to a stop at the bottom of the hill, his leg burning in pain and his irritation and exhaustion reaching a peak.

He righted himself with a pained grunt and was about to continue on when the sight ahead caught his eye. Situated innocently ahead, just past the edge of the Fiore Forest, was a logged cabin. The cabin itself was relatively large, being two-stories tall. The outer walls of the bottom story was made of mixed stone while the top story and balcony was made of polished wood. It was an overall nice-looking home; one that seemed to have been well-lived in, but seemed to remain well secluded from the rest of the human town.

Tired, and with limited options, Natsu headed for the back of the house: the side closest to the forest in the off-chance he had to make a run for it.

Reaching the back door, he was mildly surprised of the doggie door. Swatting at the back door handle, Natsu was disappointed to find that it was, as he suspected, locked. The doggie door on the other hand…

Nosing at the opening, the flap gave way and he stuck his head through. The immediate interior of the home held a small kitchen the led into a sitting area where the front door was and a set of stairs to the immediate left. Everything from what Natsu could see was neat and well-cleaned, but his ears told him that the owner of the establishment was not home.

_At least…not yet_. His thought to himself dryly. He really didn't want to deal with humans. Gramps was going to lose his hair with the grief the council gave him with Fairy Tail's 'constant need to expose themselves and endanger the well-being of the supernatural community to humans'. Not that annoying Gramps wasn't fun. But an upset council made for an upset Gramps which usually ended up with Natsu being more than thankful for his healing capabilities on numerous occasions.

Settling for facing Makarov's anger once again, just this once, Natsu began the tedious task of shimmying himself through the doggie door and into the warm household. After numerous instances where he feared he would get stuck and dragging his useless leg through the opening, Natsu was too exhausted to care about anything but flopping on his belly and closing his eyes for much needed rest, not caring that he was dripping blood all along the nice tiled floor. He was so exhausted, in fact, that he barely heard the turning of keys before the front door opened.


	2. Act I, Ch II

**Woah! Thank you so much to everyone that faved, followed, and reviewed! I didn't think this story would be accepted so positively, to be honest XD But I'm happy to know that some of you seem to enjoy it. I don't at the moment have a set update date, but I'll try to update at least once a week. This one came out a little early cause I had some spare time over the weekend. Enjoy!**

* * *

Walking home was surprisingly never lonely. Living four miles away from Magnolia Veterinary Hospital, Dr. Lucy Heartfilia was without a car and usually spent the hour and a half trek lost in thought. Things like the day's events, the health of her patient's, and what she was going to eat for dinner were usually the only things that kept her company on the way home.

A rough hand yanked her out of the way of a speeding car before it could hit her.

…Maybe too lost in thought.

The loud honking of the fading vehicle snapped Lucy out of her internal thoughts and she turned to regard her savior. Spiked ginger strands peaked out of a green beanie and a dazzling smile as reflective as its owner's glasses shined back at her.

"You really should be more careful walking home, Dr. Heartfilia."

Lucy gave a tired smile of gratitude. "I'm only Dr. Heartfilia at the hospital, Loke." She joked.

"Really? Cause you can operate on me at any time." He flirted, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively.

She rolled her eyes and pushed his face away before returning to her walk home. "Flirt."

"Only for you, Princess." He shot back, moving to walk beside her. Lucy raised an eyebrow at the action.

"You know you don't have to walk me home, Loke."

"What kind of gentleman would I be if I left a lady to walk home alone? Besides, I hear there are wolves out-and-about. Wouldn't want Magnolia's best veterinarian to get eaten by wolves or pass out in the snow." He said, staring pointedly up as snow began to fall more heavily around them.

Accepting his response, she shrugged and continued on. In reality, she was thankful for the company he provided. It was better than talking to herself or getting hit by a car on accident.

"You do know that wolves aren't social creatures, right? If anything, they usually try to avoid any and all human contact." She stated, factually.

"You'd be surprised." Loke murmured to himself. Catching his words, Lucy decided to shrug them off. The rest of the walk was made in content silence.

* * *

The duo laughed as they stumbled up the stairs of Lucy's porch. The blonde let out one last light chuckle before inserting the right key into the lock, turning to regard the ginger.

"Do you want to come inside? I'd hate for you to have to walk all the ways back. I have a spare bedroom."

Loke paused, shock briefly flashing across his face before it smoothed out to a gentle smile. "Sure." He replied.

Lucy nodded and turned the knob to let them in. She discarded her shoes and coat at the entryway, leaving her in only her lab coat and medical scrubs, before gesturing for Loke to do the same.

"I haven't really had time to stock up on food lately, so I hope you're okay with –"

Rough panting could be heard beyond the foyer and she froze at the site of a large-furred mass and discarded satchel bag on her kitchen floor. Following the trail of blood it had made, she saw that it had somehow miraculously squeezed itself through the pet door meant for Plue. That was amazing considering how the wolf she was staring at was almost twice the size of her German Shepard!

The sight of the increasing puddle of blood beneath the creature tore her out of her reverie. "Loke! There's a first aid and surgery kit in the hallway closet. Go get it. There should also be towels on the top shelf, too. Grab a few." She barked the orders as she shed the doctor's coat from her shoulders and rolled up the sleeves of her scrubs.

She was in the process of tying up her hair with a spare rubber band when Loke gripped her wrist to stop her. "Are you sure you want to do this, Lucy? We don't know anything about this thing. How do we know it's even safe to come near it?" A haunted look shadowed his face that took Lucy by surprise, but her resolve was stronger.

"I'm a veterinarian, Loke, if there's any chance I can save that animal's life, I'm going to do it. Now, let me go and let me do my job."

Loke internally congratulated himself on not flinching under her hard stare before releasing her wrist with a sigh. "You're too caring for your own good, Lucy." But she didn't hear him, already making her way to the wolf's prone form. He watched as she whispered encouraging words and reached out to touch the wounded animal, not leaving for the requested items until he was sure the animal wouldn't attack her.

Lucy hunkered down as she approached the panting wolf, trying to make herself seem as small and non-threatening as possible. Basic tips on approaching an injured wolf sped through her mind as she inched closer and closer. The wolf's half-lidded eyes caught her movements and regarded her, but didn't move. It was either spent from its injuries or thought her insignificant enough to not disturb it, she wasn't going to bet on either option. The most dangerous type of animal was either an injured or corned one. Seeing as the wolf could be put under both categories, predicting its reactions to her actions wasn't high on Lucy's bucket list.

Like with most of her animal patients, she began to hum softly under her breath. She had heard in some cases that music affected animals similarly to humans and she always tried to make her patients as comfortable as possible before they were put under for surgery or…or through euthanasia.

Regardless, the wolf seemed content with her soft tones and released what she could only describe as a tense sigh. She raised a hand, making sure it was in the wolf's line of sight, before slowly moving it through the short furs of its head down to the base of its neck. The wolf tensed uncomfortably before relaxing.

Lucy continued her ministrations before talking aloud, not really minding that she was talking to herself, "What'd you get yourself into –", she glanced down, "–boy?" Taking in the sight of the multiple wounds that slashed across its body and the slither of white bone peeking out from its left leg, Lucy concluded a possible pack scuffle. At least that's what she believed before the bullet wound in its right side caught her eye.

"Stupid hunters." She uttered bitterly.

"Here." Lucy looked up to see Loke's arms laden with towels and the items she requested. Taking a towel and both emergency kits in hand, she directed Loke to fill a large bowl with hot water and to drench the towels.

When he returned she had already laid out the clean towel and medical equipment and was pulling on a pair of surgical gloves. He placed the water to the side and within arms-reach.

"We need to take the bullet out first." She declared reaching for a pair of forceps.

Loke nodded. "Just tell me what to do."

* * *

**Present**

One bandaged wolf later, Lucy was sitting back on her heels with a relieved sigh. She pulled the blood-coated elastic gloves from her hands and threw them, as well as a few other bloodied cottons and wipes, in a separate bag to dispose of later. The rest of her tools were quickly wrapped up and placed aside to be properly sterilized.

Turning to her unruly patient, she was happy to see that Coal had stopped bleeding. There were still cuts she and Loke weren't able to properly wrap, like the scratches along his snout, but she made sure to cleanse the area with alcohol wipes to at least prevent any future infection. Coal wasn't too happy with the sting that accompanied it. Still, he was surprisingly compliant throughout most of the whole process. Not that she was complaining. Other than when they were in the process of removing the bullet, Coal was the perfect patient and didn't so much as whimper once. Moving in a way where he was sure to catch her movements, she extended her hand and carefully pat his head once in appreciation of his cooperation.

She eyed the wrapping around his left, back leg and pursed her lips. "I don't have the proper equipment here to fix a fracture like this. We'll have to take him down to the Veterinary tomorrow." She said with a quick look outside her kitchen window. The snow had begun to fall more rapidly and was layered over the ground like a thick white blanket. It was a wonder that the wolf had traveled so far on such a banged-up leg.

"I'll give Scorpio a call to come pick us up tomorrow, then." Loke replied. He was about to leave the kitchen and enter into the foyer when he paused and turned around. "Uh, do you have any spare clothes I could borrow?" gesturing to the smears of blood across his white button-up.

Lucy glanced down at her own bloodied clothes. "Yeah, I think I might have something in your size." She moved to get up when something caught her eye.

In her haste to bandage the wolf she had almost forgotten about the satchel that Coal had probably brought in with him. There wasn't anything outwardly appealing about it. The brown-red leather of the bag was faded and ripped in various places and only one of the buckles at the front seemed to be in working condition. The other had been cleanly ripped off, only the leather strap remained and even that looked as if it had been thoroughly chewed through.

_Maybe Coal actually belonged to someone?_ Lucy thought. The bag could possess his owner's credentials or a number she could call to let them know their wolf was safe. She reached a hand out to pick up the bag when a low growl stopped her. Surprised, Lucy turned to look down at Coal. He was still in the same lax position, but his eyes held a silent promise of pain that bore into her. This time watching the wolf, she moved to grab the bag again. That same growl reverberated in the air and, this time, Lucy could actually see Coal pull his lips back and bare his teeth in a threatening warning.

She didn't know if the next thing she did was either very stupid or very brave. Taking two fingers, she rapped the top of the dark wolf's snout once and said in a scolding tone, "Is that anyway to treat someone who bandages you up? You're lucky I don't kick you out right now."

If a wolf could look shocked, Coal pulled it off beautifully. Ears pricked forward and eyes wide, Coal, thankfully, stopped growling and simply stared. Lucy stood her ground and continued glaring down at him before getting up to leave. The bag remained untouched on the floor.

* * *

He didn't understand the blonde human. No one with any common sense of self-preservation would even think to cuff a growling wolf and then _lecture_ it. It was with these thoughts that Natsu determined that the human girl was…weird. And her ginger-head friend was annoying. Natsu didn't like the way he smelled.

As he watched her exit the room he huffed and lowered his head to rest lightly on his paws. It wasn't his problem. Once he healed up he'd be long gone before the sun even rose. He just needed to wait for his healing factor to kick in and mend the fracture in his leg, no biggie. Most of the superficial wounds had already closed up before he tumbled across the house he now resided in. In fact…

He frowned and glanced down at himself. Enough time had already passed for him to be fully healed already. Nudging at one of the bandages across his torso, he hissed at the pain and retracted his snout. Yep, not healed yet. Zeref must have equipped Jackal with something to slow his healing. Silver claws, perhaps? Silver tooth implants? No, Natsu would have felt the bite of silver. He might be immune to some of the effects normal werewolves experienced when in contact with the metal, but pain was still pain. Thoughts of what the Chaos Witch might be planning stoked his ire and he let out a growl of frustration.

The light patter of feet reached his ears and he silenced his snarling; the human had returned. Re-emerging in a tank top and loose sweatpants, the blonde glanced in his direction to see he had yet to move from his spot before shifting her gaze and making a move towards the dark oak cabinets that lined the walls. Natsu watched as she shifted to the tips of her toes to rummage through the shelves. He almost laughed at the concentrated look on her face as she balanced precariously on her own two feet and attempted to reach for something on the highest shelf, but he kept his face as stoic as possible, merely observing.

She let out a noise of triumph and closed the cabinet, two bowls in hand. Moving to the sink, she filled one to the brink with water before leaving it on the counter. Taking the other, she moved to the refrigerator. With her back towards him, he couldn't see what she had filled the bowl with until she turned around, picked up the water bowl from the counter and placed both containers on the ground at his feet. The second bowl was filled with what looked like raw chicken legs. Confused, he didn't make a move towards the offerings and, instead, stared up at the blonde in hope to convey his thoughts without words. Why?

She seemed to catch on to his confusion and rolled her eyes. "Sorry the meat isn't fresh. It's not like I can go hunting for a fresh deer for you out in that storm, can I? Hope you don't mind chicken." Standing to her feet, she left and he didn't think she'd be returning until the morning.

He continued to stare at the meat and water, contemplating his next move, when his stomach made the decision for him with another loud growl. With only minimal trepidation, he gorged on the meat with reckless abandon. And as he finished his small but satisfying meal, he didn't think a short nap, sheltered from the cold outside, sounded like a bad idea, thoughts of weird blondes and annoying gingers momentarily forgotten.

* * *

She didn't understand the black wolf sprawling on her kitchen floor. It took months, even _years_, to strengthen the bond between wolf and human for a wolf to even consider letting a human touch, much less, pat it. No wolf with a common sense of self-preservation would let a strange human it had only just met attempt to touch and bandage it. It was with these thoughts that Lucy determined that Coal was…weird. Well, not weird, pre se. Maybe…too trusting? Then again, who was she to talk? _She _was too trusting for her own good sometimes, too. For good reason, though! Caring for animals and people alike was just who she was. If she had the knowledge on how to properly bandage a bleeding wound or the skills to comfort why not use them? Wasn't that why she became a veterinarian in the first place?

_I'm going to save all the animals in the world!_ It was a farfetched dream for such a tiny child. Twenty years and a reality check later, Lucy had altered her dream to something much more manageable, graduating at the top of her class at Hargeon University she had received a degree as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine and moved out to Magnolia to start her career with the help of a letter of recommendation. True, Magnolia was a rather small town, but the people were kind and the work she did was satisfying.

Now that she thought about it, maybe Coal had experienced human companionship before. The leather satchel could more than prove that. She didn't know why she left the bag untouched like she had. Maybe it was fear at potentially being bitten by a wolf? No…something else had stopped her. Coal possessed very intelligent eyes, and something in them just…she didn't know…compelled her to leave it be?

Lucy hugged her pillow to her face and groaned in frustration. She had a wild wolf in her kitchen, which she didn't even bother to sedate or tie up, Loke was in the guest bedroom downstairs, and she was thinking too much on things that just weren't…_normal_. Forget Coal, _she _was the weird one.

She released the death grip she had on the pillow and turned onto her side, humming to herself. Memories of a warm motherly embrace and soothing voice filled her mind as she drifted off to sleep.

* * *

The next morning was…eventful.

Trudging down the stairs, Lucy rubbed at her right eye sleepily before pulling her tangled hair into a messy bun. She turned to see how her late-night visitor was fairing when the sight of an empty kitchen greeted her. The only evidence that the injured wolf had previously occupied area were dried smears of blood and the two empty bowls next to it. Frantic, Lucy moved to look out the back door. There was no way Coal would be able to move around on his own. Sure, he might have traveled through the forest and squeezed himself through Plue's doggie door, but still! The bone had been sticking out when she last saw it. Any movement he made would be painful. Stupid! She should have known to lock the dog door when she had the chance. Coal could be passed out in the snow somewhere bleeding out for all she knew!

Lucy all but lunged across the foyer to her hallway closet for a jacket when the sound of heavy snoring reached her ears. Turning, she found a familiar dark mass situated on the floor between the couch and coffee table. Because of his size, he didn't quite fit, half of his body hidden beneath the table and the other pressed against the bottom of the couch.

She breathed a sigh of relief that the wolf hadn't left before she saw the dark smears across her carpet leading from the kitchen to under Coal's sleeping form. The damn wolf had opened his wounds!

Grouchy, she marched up to the table the beast was sleeping under and slammed her hand down on the table. "What do you think you're do –?" Now, if she was in a better mindset, she would have realized that her method of waking the wolf wasn't necessarily the most ideal, which was why what happened next wasn't entirely to be blamed on Coal…or so the rational part of her brain told itself.

Startled awake, the wolf attempted to jump to his feet when his head met the bottom of the coffee table, which caused the table to flip and for Lucy to scream. The noise surprised the now awake Coal and he whimpered at its intensity, pawing at his ears, before Loke ran out to the foyer, clad in only his boxers yelling, "LUCY! What's hap –?!"

He didn't get to finish the sentence as Lucy round-house kicked him screaming, "Pervert! Put on some clothes!"

She really needed some coffee.

* * *

**I'm trying to make the chapters longer, but let me know if you think the length of the chapters is too short. Longer chapters might mean longer waits for updates though. Also, let me know what you all think about the pace of the story! I already have a general idea of where and how I want this story to go, so let me know your thoughts! Thank you!**


	3. Act I, Ch III

**Here you all go, a good 5K chapter! Thank you again to everyone that faved, followed, and reviewed! You all make me so happy to see how much support this story has gotten! To aliciacevbra: I actually have decided on an update schedule, finally XD. I'm planning to update this story every Sunday starting next week! If any of you are into Sousei no Onmyouji (Twin Star Exorcists) plz check out my other story Red Wings & White Claws! If you haven't heard of it, I highly recommend you consider reading the manga (Anime isn't too good - sorry if you might think otherwise that's just my opinion) ****Welp, enough from me. Hope you all enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

A freshly bandaged Natsu found himself lounging on the couch as he watched Lucy move from the kitchen to the foyer to clean up his 'bloody mess'. She shot a glare in his direction, probably for making himself at home on her plush cushions.

His ears perked at the sound of an approaching vehicle. The occasional choke that the engine released suggested that the driver had yet to bring it in for maintenance in a while. A truck? It sounded like an old truck. The automobile would pause every few seconds, but that didn't stop its driver as it sped up the icy road and slowed to a stop outside the house. The driver stepped out of the car and worked his way up to the house through the piled snow in extended foot falls.

Smelling no malicious intent, Natsu let out a light sound that was as close to a bark as his larynx would allow before the doorbell rang. The blonde kneeling on the carpet paused in her attempts to remove his blood stains from the floor covering before calling for the ginger-head to open the door.

Natsu watched as the door opened to welcome who he supposed was named 'Scorpio'. The man was fairly tan with two sides of his hair dyed red and white respectively. He seemed friendly enough, greeting Loke with a giant smile before calling out to the blonde. "Yo, Lucy! How ya' been?"

'Lucy' smiled and stood to her feet. "Scopio, it's good to see you. How's Aquarius doing?"

"Al'ight. Loke an' I jus' got called back to Hargeon for another job; so, I'll get to see 'er sooner than I hoped."

Lucy frowned. "I wish you two would quit working for that traveling agency. I rarely get to see you guys nowadays."

Natsu watched as Loke moved to wrap an arm around her shoulders in a side-hug. "Aww~! Don't be like that Princess. We'll be back before you know it. Besides, the boss is pretty lenient about giving us time off every now and then. Unless, you'd like me to check for any fancy resorts to…check you in?"

The black wolf had to hold back a gag less the raw chicken he ate this morning come up. That would just be a waste of food.

Lucy rolled her eyes and stepped out of his hold before making her way up the stairs. "I'm going to go change and then we can go. Watch Coal while I'm gone." And she left.

The atmosphere immediately tensed, the two men stared at one another before turning their gaze on him. He held their stares, not backing down.

Scorpio spoke first. "Do you think…?"

"Yeah." Loke nodded.

"Shouldn't we tell…you know…_him_?"

The ginger sighed and scratched at his head, ruffling the spikes. "No, he hasn't done anything to suggest he's a threat. Lucy's fine when she interacts with him. I just get the feeling –"

"What feeling?" Lucy re-emerged from the top floor and was making her way down, clad in navy blue medical scrubs.

"That I must be in heaven because you're an angel." Loke quickly answered, actually _skipping_ to meet her at the bottom of the stairs. Scorpio continued to stare at Natsu longer than he would have liked before turning away. "Okay! Let's get this guy loaded up on the truck an' head out!"

What?

* * *

Lucy wasn't too surprised that they weren't able to convince Coal to ride in the dog crate. But it did take a lot of convincing to persuade the wolf to go anywhere near Scorpio's old semi-truck. In the end, Loke and Scorpio had worked together to toss the squirming wolf onto the bed of the truck, despite Lucy's loud protests.

"Watch his leg!" She hopped onto the truck next to the wolf and did a quick scan to ensure his wounds hadn't reopened. They'd been doing a lot better when she had changed the bandages this morning.

Lucy watched as Coal remained slumped on his stomach, not moving. That was odd, she half-expected him to jump off the truck and run away into the forest. She shrugged it off to being exhausted from having been wrestled onto the truck and took her seat beside him.

Loke and Scorpio sat at the front - Scorpio at the wheel - started the engine, and they were off. As the truck began moving down the makeshift road into Magnolia, Coal keeled over and started gagging. Lucy looked over in concern and wasn't prepared when bits of chicken leg and bile splattered across the bed of the semi-truck. She was able to piece together Coal's reluctance towards going near the truck and his vomiting fairly quickly and called for Scorpio to stop.

Beside her, Coal groaned as the truck lurched to a halt. Loke stepped out and moved to the side of the vehicle with a frown. "What's the problem?"

"Coal has motion sickness."

The ginger paused to process the information before asking, "What do you want to do?" She pursed her lips in thought. They couldn't walk, not on Coal's bad leg, and he was too heavy to carry. Scorpio and Loke barely managed to lift him onto the truck in the first place.

Coal's head rolled to the side and he let out a pathetic whimper. Feeling guilty, she lifted his head so it would rest on her lap. She made sure to go slow so that he would track her movements, but he seemed too listless to care. Turning back to Loke she said, "Let's go. Just tell Scorpio to take it slow, okay? And try to avoid the bumps." He nodded and went to relay the message, the truck was moving soon after.

Coal let out another pained whine and Lucy set her hand on his head to rub in what she hoped was a soothing gesture. The wolf quieted, but would release a low groan every now and then. The rest of the short ten minute trip was made in relative silent, Lucy getting lost in the passing scenery of snowcapped trees and the rising sun. Breathing in deeply, the smells of the forest pervaded her senses and she felt that she could have gotten lost in the beauty of the surrounding nature.

Soon the trees began to become sparse and the snow path began to blend into snow-covered concrete. Sounds of other vehicles and the bustling of the town overpowered the noises of the forest critters and Lucy waved and called greetings to familiar faces as people started their day.

"Morning, Lucy!"

"Morning, Ms. Heartfilia! How you doing?"

"Hey, Lucy! Found yourself another stray?"

Lucy laughed at the last comment and called out a short response before Scorpio could drive too far away. "No, more like he found _me_." Glancing down at the wolf in question she noticed that Coal wasn't a completely black wolf. Dark brown, almost red, furs reflected in the sunlight overheard along the undercoat of his thick fur. It was while she was inspecting his form that she noticed the change of alignment in his leg. It appeared as if the bone had never been sticking out in the first place. She wouldn't be sure until she un-bandaged it though, but Coal was either an abnormally quick healer or she wasn't paying as much attention as she should have to the wound. Lucy frowned at that last thought and quietly admonished herself. She couldn't afford to be careless in this type of field. She'd make sure Coal healed up as quickly as possible and be released back to his home as soon as he was able.

Before she knew it, the truck was rolling to a stop in front of a building she considered her second home. Magnolia Veterinary Hospital was, for a word, small. In such a small forest town, there really wasn't a need for a large one. Most of the businesses that dotted the land were primarily restaurants and hotels for anyone that tended to be passing through. Everyone knew everyone in Magnolia; they were a tight-knit family and worked to support one another every step of the way, no matter the problem. That's just how they were.

Though tiny, the establishment stood proud with the words 'Magnolia Veterinary Hospital' displayed in large, bold letters across the top of the entrance. It was decorated with white paint and red bricks on the outside, much like its neighboring buildings: 'Magnolia Tea & Cakes' and 'Crimson Hair Salon'.

Lucy lifted Coal's head from off her lap and slipped from under him to jump off the truck. Figuring out the vehicle was no longer moving, the black wolf scrambled to his feet. Lucy never got the chance to protest before Coal threw himself off the truck and landed in an ungraceful heap on the floor. She sighed before squatting next to him, "Are you trying to make your leg worse?"

Loke moved around the truck to see what happened before jerking his thumb over his shoulder in the direction of the building. "I'll ask Aries to bring out a stretcher." Lucy nodded in appreciation. Scorpio exited the truck to stand next to her as they waited.

Growing bored, the large black wolf attempted and managed to stand to his feet, broken leg lifted off the ground. He scanned his surroundings and eyed the forest at the edge of town. Probably thinking about heading off soon, Lucy thought.

"At least let me check it out first, okay?" She told him. Coal paused in his search and turned to face her with an impatient expression. For some reason, she felt that he understood what she was saying. His eyes screamed intelligence and his body language wasn't like that of any average wolf. It almost reminded her of….a human?

Loke returned from the hospital carrying a stretcher, a shorter, pink-haired woman following after him. Aries was fairly pale in appearance and equally as shy. Lucy was still having a hard time to convince her to call her by name outside of work instead of…

"Dr. Heartfilia! Go-good morning. I'm sorry."

Dr. Heartfilia.

She didn't bother to correct the young woman, it'd only make her feel guiltier in the end. Instead, she smiled and waved in return. "Good morning, Aries. No, need to be sorry. Thank you for helping Loke." A blush bloomed across Aries face and Lucy bit down on her smile. She was just too cute sometimes.

Loke laid out the stretcher for Coal to lay in and called for the wolf. Coal took one look at the stretcher, peered at the hospital, then at her and huffed. Limping forward, the wolf bypassed the stretcher and headed for the entrance to the Veterinary, turning to face them when he reached the doors.

Definitely not a normal wolf.

Loke broke the silence. "Well, guess you don't need me and Scorpio anymore. We'll start heading out now." He turned to the passenger side of the truck, missing Aries disappointed frown. Scorpio gave a two-finger salute and hopped into the driver's seat. "See ya, Lucy! Aries! I'll let Aquarius know you said 'hi'."

Both women waited as the truck backed out of where it was side-parked against the sidewalk and headed down the street and out of sight. Turning to the impatient wolf, Lucy sighed before opening the door for him to limp through.

* * *

The hospital was not what Natsu expected. From a human's perspective, it was like any other veterinary. There were people sitting and standing in the waiting room, their pets sitting by their sides or in their laps, some whimpering in fear and others sniffing around curiously. But the place smelled, dare he say, nice. The scent of death and medicine didn't pervade the air like normal medical centers did. It sort of reminded him of how Lucy smelled. He couldn't really describe the scent she carried around with her, only that it reminded him of home. It reminded him of how the early morning airs at Fairy Tail would smell of early dew drip and how the forest surrounding their campgrounds would smell of fresh pine and magic. He shook his head at the notion, this wasn't his home. There was one waiting for him once he got back. But...it was hard to ignore that something about the blonde woman whose house he stumbled into didn't intrigue him a little.

Natsu turned to see as Lucy was greeted by everyone in the lobby, everyone attempting to make quick conversation before her attention was stolen by another person. Everyone was vying for her attention, but she didn't seem agitated in the least. She embraced it and returned the same affections she was rewarded. They were all captured by her radiance and optimism, and gravitated towards her like she was the very sun itself. He couldn't find it in himself to worry that he was becoming much the same.

Finished with her conversations, Lucy gestured for him to follow her behind the front desk. He obliged her. People whispered and pointed as he walked past, but he paid them no heed. Limping past the doorway that blocked the lobby area from the rest of the building, Natsu stopped to peer curiously as the blonde doctor kneeled down just behind the desk. Natsu could sniff out the old-timer before he could see him.

Laying on an old cot to the side of the desk was an old German Shepherd. White fur speckled across its tired body and were easily picked out from the rest of its black and brown fur. Sniffing the air, the old dog lifted his head in Natsu's general direction and it was only then that its most notable feature was revealed. Two murky gray orbs gazed to the slight left of Natsu's own dark onyx eyes.

The dog was blind.

Lucy finally broke the silence when she saw that the two animals wouldn't be barking or tearing at one another's throats. "Coal, this is Plue. Plue, this is Coal." Plue, even with his blind eyes, regarded him with an uncertain expression, but after turning his attention to Lucy's general direction and then back to him, he seemed to come to a consensus.

Natsu could see the message Plue tried to convey through his murky grey eyes. _'Protect. Please - protect'. _There was no question on the subject of who Plue was referring to and the intent of the plea was clear: he was too old to look after his blonde owner anymore.

"Plue's been with me for a long time now, but there was an accident and he lost his eyesight." Lucy explained, reaching out to pat the dog's head. Plue gave a happy whine in response. "He stays at the hospital now since he can't walk home with me anymore and I can't watch him at home when I'm at work."

Finished patting him, Lucy stood to her feet and continued down the hallway. "Let's get that leg checked out, yeah?"

Natsu gave one more glance to Plue's aging eyes, his silent plea still present. _'Sure, old man.' _He shrugged it off and hurried after the blonde. Like he could go around making promises to watch over every human he met. _Sorry._

Lucy was stopped one time by a passing nurse in pink scrubs before she led him into a room. The room itself was like what he guess would be found in a vet's exam room, but it still gave him chills and flashbacks of memories he preferred to keep buried far into his mind, where they wouldn't be able to escape and haunt him.

**There was pain… **

_**Stop! Leave me alone!**_

…**and it was cold,**

_**Natsu...my little brother...**_

**so, cold…**

_**I'm not your brother! Monster!**_

…**but his throat was scalding for… something **

**Something to quench the thirst.**

"Hey." Lucy's voice snapped him out back to the present and he shook his pelt out to get rid of the chill that climbed up his spine.

She kneeled in front of him and directed her pointer finger to the ground. "Can you lay down? I need to check your bandages." He huffed but obliged her, sprawling himself on his right side in a way where he'd be able to watch the door.

Lucy smiled and started cutting away at the bandages across his torso and then his leg, humming that same song quietly again. "Everything looks good. Really good. You must be a fast healer, Coal." He let out a huffed laugh. That was an understatement.

"Your leg kind of concerns me though. Even if you do have fast healing it couldn't have recovered this much in such short a time." He tensed.

"It's...abnormal. Almost supernatural." She frowned down at him with an analytical mind. Great, just what he needed. Erza would kill him if a human found out their secret, and that was saying something coming from an immortal. 'Clean-up' was always so hard to do now that social media came into existence. Whatever happened to air mail?

"What happened to you before–" His reached out to anchor his mind to her own before she could break eye contact. Mind compulsion wasn't something he enjoyed doing, it meant tapping into powers that Zeref _gifted_ him. But no matter how bittersweet it proved itself useful, combined with his own werewolf healing, he could feel the limp in his leg repair itself and the rest of his bites and scratches finished stitching themselves up till there was nothing left.

He never broke contact with Lucy's brown orbs, compelling her to relinquish hold over herself to him. The concerned look she was directing at him faded to a dull brown and he felt a tiny twinge of regret for creating an expression that didn't match her uplifting personality.

'_My injuries are all healed. I'm just a regular wolf you found. In fact, forget that you ever saw–'_

"Dr. Heartfilia, you're needed in room three." That same nurse from the hallway walked into the room. Lucy shook her head and snapped out of the trance he had her under to turn and respond. Humans had the most impeccable timing.

Clamping down on his _other_ side, Natsu stared in awed, suspicion at the blonde woman in front of him.

That wasn't possible. Even if he hasn't used Compulsion in a long time it was still almost impossible to break from. This was going to be harder than he originally thought.

"I'll be right there, Rebecca. Could you have a look at Milo in room two? I think we're about ready to take his cast off soon." Rebecca nodded and left after handing Lucy a manila folder.

She opened the folder and the light seemed to drain from her eyes as her lips twisted into a slight frown. From his position, he could see the picture of a grown Golden Retriever clipped to the front. The name 'Wilson, Teddy' was printed in the top corner.

Rising to her full height, Lucy said with a strained smile, "Stay here, okay? I'll be right back." She headed for the door, opened it, and left, leaving it slightly cracked open. Whether it was on purpose or not, he didn't care. Natsu waited for the sounds of her footsteps to disappear into another room before he rose to his feet. Fully healed, he moved to the door and waited for any noise of movement down the hall before nosing the opening wider for him to squeeze out.

As he made to move down the hall a sob filled with pure anguish had the furs at his neck standing on end. Looking around, he found that the sounds were coming from room three. The one Lucy had entered.

Natsu shifted his gaze from the front of the veterinary - towards freedom - and the wooden door with a bronze '3' hanging from the top, center. Curiosity overruled his need for freedom and he moved to sit to the side of the closed door. Listening, the sob had quieted to the blubbering cries of a little girl.

"Don't! Please don't take him away, Dr. Heartfilia! He's a good boy! Don't take Teddy away!"

"It's okay, Kathy. Teddy is going to be in a better place. He'll be happy there." A gentle, but strained, voice tried to soothe the child. The mother, he presumed.

"But I don't want to lose him." Kathy sobbed. "I love him, mommy! I don't want to lose him."

"I know, honey."

The sobs continued before he heard Lucy's voice. "It's alright, Kathy. Teddy's just going to fall sleep so that he won't feel any pain. He'll dream of you and all the memories you share together."

Kathy sniffled some more before blubbering, "B-but wha-what if he– *hiccup* he gets nigh-nightmares? I wo-won't be th-there t-to wake hi-him u-up." She burst into more tears.

Lucy cooed the child softly. "Would it be alright if I sang Teddy to sleep then? That'll help him keep the nightmares away."

"Co-could you? Pl-please?"

"Alright." Lucy said softly. "Do you want to tell Teddy anything before he goes to sleep?"

"Ye-yeah." Natsu heard the girl shuffle to her dog. He could hear the animal's shallow breathing, but there wasn't any fear tainting his scent; he had accepted that his time had come.

"Te-teddy? I love you, ok-okay? Yo-you're a re-really go-good boy, an-and I'm go-going to mi-miss you. Ha-have go-good dreams, okay? *hiccup* I'll ne-never for-forget abo-bout you. So, do-don't forget abou-about me, pr-promise? I lo-love you, Te-teddy."

The mother gave the daughter a few words of encouragement before giving her own words to Teddy. When the mother was done, Lucy said, "You don't have to be here for this next part, Kathy. I can call one of the nurses to watch you in the waiting room."

The girl refused. "I wa-want to b-be he-here when Te-Teddy goes t-to sle-eep."

"Alright" she replied and she started singing. It was the same tune she was always humming under her breath, but the soft words she added had something in Natsu's heart clenching.

"_Lay down your head and I'll sing you a lullaby_

_Back to the years of loo-li lai-lay_

_And I'll sing you to sleep and I'll sing you tomorrow_

_Bless you with love for the road that you go"_

And as her soft lullaby continued, the sound of the dog's heartbeat began to beat slower and slower. But never once did Natsu smell fear as the dog passed. Teddy was at peace.

Lucy's scent became more pronounced as she sang and he could have sworn that he sensed...magic. It was a miniscule smell when he had entered the building, but it was more pronounced as Lucy was finishing her song.

There were only three heartbeats he could detect behind the door of room three, now. Natsu had to hold back the urge to howl for the passing animal. The wolf in him demanding that he pay his respects to the fallen.

Back in control, Natsu left behind the quiet sobbing and continued his journey down the hall. Passing by where Plue lay, Natsu stopped momentarily at the confusion the dog was telegraphing into his mind. He tried to ignore the seed of guilt that had taken root and moved pass the German Shepherd, across the waiting room, and pushed out the doors to freedom. He ran.

He ran from the mystery that was Lucy Heartfilia. Ran from the guilt, murky gray eyes instilled within him. He ran like he did back then. He ran just like he always had from things he couldn't solve with his fists and strength alone. He ran.

Natsu ran down the trail leading back to the cabin, eventually passing it, and back into the forest. By the time he stopped outside Fairy Tail's borders it was dark out and snowing again. Lucy had to be back home by now.

He roughly shook his head. She wasn't his responsibility, he didn't need to assure a part of himself of her whereabouts. It was only when his mind was thinking back on the blonde doctor in the cabin at the outskirts of Magnolia that he remembered he'd left his satchel back at the house. _Shit._ He gave his home one more glance before turning around to run back from whence he came.

The satchel itself wasn't really anything important. Natsu had had the thing for ages now, but what it held was too important to leave behind. It was the only thing he had to remember the parts of his past before Fairy Tail not plagued with memories of Zeref and his cruel mind games. He wasn't leaving it behind.

When he made it back to the house, he had to clamp down on the small hint of fear that sparked when he didn't see any of the lights in the cabin on. She wasn't home yet? He wiped the thought from his mind as fast as it arose and hunched down to enter through the doggie door...again. Once again, he found it was open. Lucy had to learn to lock this thing. Who knew what kinds of animals could enter her house at night?

The inside was the same as Natsu had last seen it except, it wasn't entirely quiet. He crept through the kitchen steadily and strained his ears. The sounds of a violin and light singing could be heard from the top floor. Natsu tried to ignore it as he moved to where he stashed his bag to find the hiding spot bare.

His frustration was immediately soothed by the music from above that beckoned him forward. Like a fool, he obliged and followed its sweet melody up the stairs and across a hall. Lucy's scent reached his nose and he sighed in relief.

The door to her room was wide open and he peered inside. Sheets of music and art decorated the walls and floors of the room. Much of the art was of natural seems from just outside and others were of animals in scenic backgrounds and of patients from the veterinary hospital. Seated on top of the only bed in the room was Lucy, eyes closed as her hands and fingers coaxed sweet notes from the violin in her grasp. The same song from the veterinary played from her lips in accordance with the instrument.

He didn't realize he'd even stepped into the room until his paw stepped on a stray music sheet across the floor, crinkling the paper. Lucy broke from her song and stopped to stare in his direction. She didn't seem surprised to see him.

Reaching for her nightstand, she brought out a familiar leather satchel from one of the compartments to show him. "You seemed really possessive of this the first time. I figured you'd want it back." She laid it at the edge of the bed for him to take.

He warily walked forward to the end of the bed, but didn't reach out to take the bag. Lucy smiled softly at his hesitation. She seemed so sad. "I wish you hadn't left the hospital like you had, Coal. But I guess wolves don't like being in captivity for too long, huh? After all, you are just a regular wolf." The way she said the words made Natsu stiffened. Compulsion hadn't worked?

"But I'm glad your wounds are all healed." She continued. He couldn't tell how much his mind had compelled her to forget. He should be taking this chance to get the job done right; make her forget ever meeting him; let her get back to her normal life before he had interrupted it. It was his duty as a member of the Fairy Tail Guild to ensure the safety of the rest of the supernatural community. No humans could learn of their existence.

That's what a part of himself was saying, at least. His wolf wouldn't hear of it, and he wondered if he was the one that had been compelled when they locked eye contact for not wanting to be erased from this mysterious human's life.

Instead, he moved around the bed to nudge at the violin she cradled in her lap. If he was never going to see her again, he felt obligated to hear her song at least once more.

She gazed down at the instrument with a sad look in her eye. "It's a memento from my mother. Or at least...I think it is. I don't remember much about her." Lucy lifted her head to stare into his eyes. "She would hum the same song to get me to sleep every night, saying it would chase the nightmares away, but I can't ever remember what she looks like." She dragged her fingers along the body of the violin to caress the tiny stars carved into it like constellations.

"I don't remember the full song; so, I'm trying to fill in the gaps." Gesturing to the sheet music scattered across the room, "I thought it might make me feel closer to her if I completed the whole song." She chuckled bitterly to herself and Natsu had to hold in a wince at the unnatural sound.

"Seeing that little girl and her mother…" Shaking her head she sent him a shaky smile. "You want to listen?" Natsu seated himself next to the bed and laid his head down on the pink comforter, never taking his eyes off her.

She nodded before bringing the violin to rest on her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, notes filled the room once more before her soft voice joined it.

"_Lay down your head and I'll sing you a lullaby_

_Back to the years of loo-li lai-lay_

_And I'll sing you to sleep and I'll sing you tomorrow_

_Bless you with love for the road that you go_

_May you sail far to the far fields of fortune_

_With diamonds and pearls at your head and your feet_

_And may you need never to banish misfortune_

_May you find kindness in all that you meet_

_May there always be angels to watch over you_

_To guide you each step of the way_

_To guard you and keep you safe from all harm_

_Loo-li, loo-li, lai-lay"_

Natsu didn't know how he knew, but his spirit seemed to settle more comfortable within himself, relaxing his mind and body as her song began to lull him to sleep. Losing grasp on reality, he noticed the single tear that trailed a path down Lucy's cheek. For a reason he couldn't describe, he felt the tear was for the Golden Retriever – Teddy Wilson – she had to put down, and not for a mother she couldn't remember. She really was too selfless for her own good, crying for someone else's pain over her own.

And as her song continued to voice her silent anguish, Natsu watched as her hair began to slowly whisp upward by an invisible force of anti-gravity, golden swirls caressing the tresses and showering the room in soft, gleaming light.

This close, there was no mistaking the magic rolling off her in waves. Lucy was a witch. At the moment, the thought didn't concern him as much as it should have.

Maybe, just maybe, he'd be keeping his word to the old dog after all. One more second of the sweet song and Natsu knew no more.

* * *

**I know, I know. This story is going very slowly, but things will begin to pick up soon. I promise! Also, if any of you are interested, the song that Lucy sings is called Sleepsong by Secret Garden :)**


	4. Act I, Ch IV

**AN: Woah! Over 30 followers?! You guys are amazing and I'm so happy that lots of you are enjoying the story! Thank you to everyone that reviewed, and to aliciacevbra, I'm going to try not to give anything away, so you'll just have to keep reading to find out ;D. I wasn't really as happy with this chapter as I would have liked, but tell me what you guys think! **

* * *

Lucy was startled awake by a pouncing mass of corded muscle, limbs, and fur. The literal breath was forced out of her lungs as Coal hopped on top of her bed, nosing at her face and pulling at the covers she was comfortably cocooned in.

She groaned and pushed at his muzzle as far as her arm dared to travel from her warm nest of blankets. "Let me sleep, you crazy wolf."

When the insistent prodding ceased, Lucy smiled and made to fall back to sleep in contentment until she felt her body begin to roll across bed. She didn't have time to catch herself before she fell over the edge and to the wooden floor below in a tangled heap. A wet nose rifled through the covers as strong jaws pulled at the blanket with harsh pulls. Not wanting her favorite comforter to be ripped to shreds, Lucy assisted the wolf in untangling herself. She was reluctant to fully escape the warmth of her sheets but Coal decided for her and ripped the covers away from her body before she could brace herself.

Clad in only a tank top and sleep shorts, Lucy shivered as goosebumps traveled up her legs and across her arms. She glared at Coal who stared back innocently, blanket still gripped in his teeth. "Don't even try to act innocent. You better put that back up on the bed." She told him, sternly. Hopping to her feet, Lucy hurried across her room to the connected bathroom to change.

It'd been a month since Coal had unexpectedly decided to extend his stay. After trying to 'release' him into the wild before making her way to work, the black wolf had merely ignored and followed her instead. He would lay behind the front desk with Plue and take to walking around the building when he grew restless, but he never left. Not like that first time. At the end of the day, Coal would walk her back after work, stay the night, and the whole process would repeat itself the following day.

What had also become a unique tradition was his insistence that she play her violin for him every night before she went to bed. Before he had stumbled upon her life, Lucy would find herself playing when she was feeling particularly nostalgic or upset; now, she looked forward to these small moments to express her song for someone besides herself, even if he was a wolf.

Smiling to herself, Lucy finished dressing and exited in a brown turtleneck and dark jeans. She looked to find that her pink comforter had been thrown haphazardly across the bed while Coal impatiently paced back and forth across the room. Hearing the door open, his ears perked cutely before he swiveled to face her, panting happily. She sighed and smiled softly in his direction before fixing her bed properly. Once finished, she headed down to the kitchen, Coal skipping at her heels.

Living with the wolf had taught her that Coal's diet didn't seem to rely too heavily on a normal wolf diet of a variety of raw meats. In fact, he seemed to prefer cooked (even burnt) foods over delicacies that were more…fresh.

Placing a plate piled with eggs and bacon in front of the wolf, she scolded him for putting his paws on the table before sitting down herself with a cup of coffee. Coal was tall enough when sitting down to reach the top of her low dining table with ease. He was definitely a part of a larger breed of wolves, she suspected a familial connection to the massive wolves that dwelled further north. How he fit through Plue's doggie door not once but twice since she had met him continued to elude her.

Silencing her trivial thoughts she looked over to regard the wolf. "So, it's my day off today. Want to do anything?"

Coal stopped eating momentarily to stare at her quizzically. Maybe she was a little crazy to question him with something that required words to answer. She was just about to say to forget what she had said when Coal turned his black-furred head to peer out the kitchen window. Lucy turned in her chair to look outside as well. The snow storm that had plagued Magnolia seemed to be at a standstill for now. The ground was packed with mounds of white snow, more of the snowy substance dragging the branches of the forest's trees down under their collective weight. Looked like a good enough day for a Snow Day.

"We can go out after breakfast if you want." She said. Coal didn't turn to acknowledge her words before digging back into his breakfast, but he ate with more gusto than usual. Lucy was already getting back up to get him seconds before he even finished.

After clearing the table and washing the dishes, Lucy pulled on her olive green, fur-lined parka over her turtleneck and a pair of dark winter gloves. She moved back to the kitchen to see Coal fidgeting in place beside the back door, waiting for her.

"You could always try going through the doggie door again." She joked. Coal gave her a deadpan look before going back to shuffling in barely contained excitement. She laughed at his impatience and went to unlock the door. He was gone before she had even fully opened it. Coal was a black blur zipping across the expanse of the white snow. Lucy didn't even think she would have been able to keep track of him if it weren't for the white background being such a large contrast to his dark form. He would be racing across the snowy clearing and a minute later be jumping off the side of a tree to pivot and race to the other side. Many times when he seemed to head toward the tree line, her heart would seize up in fear that he would take the chance to leave for good, but he only skirted along the edge before coming right back.

Lucy shook her head at herself in exasperation before sitting down on the back door steps and cracking open a book she brought outside to keep herself occupied. She was being ridiculous. Coal wasn't going to stay with her forever, he was just…rehabilitating. Lucy knew there would be a point in time where she would one day have to say goodbye, but….

She peered over the edge of the pages of her book to see the wolf….doing flips? Lucy watched as Coal jumped and kicked off the side of a tree trunk to flip in the air in a graceful spiral. He was a black blur once more before he even fully met the ground. Lucy was happy to see him so energetic. Being cooped up in the house and at the veterinary for most of the day didn't leave Coal much time to get out and stretch his legs. Seeing him in his element was so breathtaking and she made a mental note to let him out to run around more often.

...for now, she wouldn't dwell on the 'what if's'. She would live in the now and try to enjoy every second of it.

* * *

Natsu couldn't remember the last time he had an opportunity to properly stretch his legs out. Staying with Lucy had its perks - she was almost a good a cook as Mira - but it never gave him a lot of time for himself, particularly his wolf. He was getting so antsy not being able to do anything but nap and laze around all day. He was getting anxious.

After running around the clearing, attempting to re-build up his speed and agility by jumping, pivoting, and flipping off the surrounding trees, he felt decently warmed up. He half-wished Gray was here so he had someone to spar with. Not like the ice-bastard would be a challenge for him.

Natsu smiled at the thought of beating on the other dark-haired werewolf and he turned to head to Fairy Tail and exact his challenge when he remembered where he was. Glancing at the seated blonde, she was too enthralled with her book to see his split second hesitation and he felt guilty of thinking of ditching her so suddenly. But he was so bored!

He perked up and smirked. Before he lost the element of surprise, Natsu raced back towards the back porch, eyes zeroed in on his target. Before the blonde could blink, he swooped in and captured his prize. Running out to the clearing once more, he turned to see the blonde seething as he held her captured book in his mouth.

"Coal! Bring that back!" He jumped side-to-side on his front paws, prodding her to enact the chase. Lucy let out an aggravated sigh before making her way towards him to retrieve her reading material. When she was only five feet away he danced further out of reach.

She was getting really irritated now, huffing in anger before speed walking after him. "I swear, Coal I'm going to-"

He let her come within grabbing distance before he skirted away once more, highly amused when she stomped her foot reminiscent to a child committing a temper tantrum. "That's it!" She ran after him.

Natsu laughed around the book in his mouth and continued the chase, making sure to not go too fast. He didn't want her to give up the chase, yet.

Lucy chased him around the yard, stomping through the thick snow in her boots as she yelled at him. "Coal! Give that back! I swear, I'm going to make you into a carpet when I get my hands on you!"

The chase continued for another few minutes before she gave up. Out of breath, Lucy gasped for air and gave him another angry glare before marching back towards the house. He stopped running and released a disappointed whine. She was probably just going to go back in and get another book.

Not wanting the fun to end, Natsu ran at Lucy full throttle and head-butted her in the back. As expected, she gave a yelp before toppling face first into the snow. He pranced around where she lay in amusement until he realized she wasn't moving. Fear spiked through his heart and he stopped parading around in favor of nudging at her hair and face with his nose. He wasn't prepared for her to suddenly spring up and throw her arms around his neck to tackle him to the ground.

They went down with a thud, Lucy on top of him, and he playfully rolled them around as she laughed in glee. When he ended up on top again, he released his hold on his body and flopped his entire weight on top of her. She released a grunt under the sudden pressure and let out a muffled yell. "Coal, you fat ass! Get off! You're squishing me!"

He made an insulted noise but granted her request and rolled off. Lucy remained laying in the snow, laughing softly. Natsu, happy to be the cause of the twinkling sound, shook out his fur of all the excess snow, and moved to deposit her book on the back porch. He was just returning from his short trip when a white projectile hit the side of his head. Lucy was armed with two more snowballs, one in each hand, a gleeful look on her face.

She laughed at his surprised expression and threw back her arm to throw another at him. Dodging to the side, he saw Lucy's expression morph from surprised to panicked before she took off running. Natsu laughed and pushed his legs faster. He was tackling her to the floor in no time at all and they rolled around in the snow once more, lost in their own world of laughter and glee.

It was dark out when Lucy joined him on the back porch steps, a cup of hot chocolate in hand. When sitting down, she was so tiny in comparison to him, about a half-foot shorter when he was in wolf form. At this angle she looked so...fragile.

Howling echoes from deep within the forest in a song of mixed voices. Natsu perks at the sound and his chest aches at the familiarity of the melody. Embedded in their song, he hears his name called, and the words of the seemingly senseless howling begin to decode within his mind: a wordless song only a werewolf could decrypt.

'_Natsu! Where are you? Here - we're here. Miss you.'_

Tilting his head back to reply, he can feel his howl vibrating through his chest in a deep tenor. He pleads with them to understand.

'_I'm fine - don't worry. Don't come.'_

His brethren soon cease in their song, but not before a howl, almost equally as deep as his own calls back.

'_Fire-breath, bastard! Stop keeping us waiting. We have a score to settle!'_

Natsu smiles and he swears that when he strained his ears he was able to hear the deep howl sputter into a pained yelp. A certain redhead was probably responsible for the cut off sound. Serves that ice-freak right.

"You don't have to force yourself to stay here, you know."

He turns to his present companion and is surprised to see the frown that mars her face. Lucy continues when Natsu opts to remain silent, "They must miss you, calling for you every night. You can go back to them." She turns to him with a strained smile. "You're good to go whenever you want to. Unless, you need a doctor's note." She jokes lamely.

It was true, Natsu could leave whenever he really wanted to. Lucy never did anything to prevent him from doing otherwise. But...his reasoning for sticking by her had morphed over the month they had spent together. At first, it was to keep an eye on her magical prowess, to see if she proved to be a possible threat. Nothing about her gave off any sort of threatening vibe, and he trusted his instincts. He didn't think she even knew she was a witch. She was just...lonely.

Bending over, Natsu laid his chin on her shoulder and nuzzled her neck in what he hoped was a comforting manner. He couldn't stay forever but he didn't have to leave today. Not today.

Lucy lifted her hand to caress the side of his face. Her touch was comforting, and he leaned his head further into her hand hoping she'd catch on to his silent request. She did and proceeded to scratch behind his ears. A deep purr rumbled through his chest.

"You're like a giant cat." She laughed. Natsu playfully pulled at her hair for the unnecessary jab at his pride.

She leaned her head against his own and released a deep breath. "Not today." she whispered.

They stayed out for a little while longer before deciding to retire for bed. Natsu eagerly bounding up the stairs for Lucy's room. He bounced into the room and onto the mattress to take his claimed spot at the foot of the bed. The blonde arrived soon after him, gently taking out her violin from its case on top of her desk. The room had been cleared of its randomly scattered papers of music and art since the first time he was here. They were all now either neatly tacked to the walls or organized and stored away. She hadn't trusted him to not chew on any of the important pieces of art.

Violin and bow in hand, Lucy sat down on the edge of her bed, bringing one leg up in a half crisscross while the other remained dangling over the edge. He lowered his head to rest atop the covers, readying himself for her soothing lullaby.

Properly positioning the violin on her shoulder, Lucy glanced at him before starting. "You sure you're not tired of this song yet?" He huffed in impatience and she giggled before clearing her throat. Placing the bow upon the violin's strings, she began her piece. And as her voice, paired with the soft accompaniment of the violin, echoed throughout the small room, Natsu welcomed the feeling of the warm caress that flowed through his body. Troubled thoughts of Fairy Tail and Zeref were washed away until all that he could comprehend was his being and Lucy's voice.

He had been contemplating this matter for a while, but he was almost positive that Lucy was a Healer, like Wendy. Her magic didn't feel quite the same, though. Whenever Wendy used magic it felt like a cooling balm washing over his body, soothing the aches and burns of his wounds. With Lucy, it was like a warm embrace washing over him, easing the tension from his body. As he watched the young witch finish her song, he swore to himself that he wouldn't allow her to be exposed to the dangers the supernatural world had to offer. She was too pure to be tainted by them: his world. The thought both pained and enforced his resolve.

Natsu shivered as Lucy's magic receded from the room and left it that much colder. He was just about to jump off her bed and head down to the couch in the foyer when her voice stopped him. "Could you stay? Just for tonight?"

Her eyes pleaded with him not to leave, loneliness clouding their usual vibrant color. He stayed put. Satisfied when he didn't move, she got up to put away the string instrument before grabbing a shirt and sweats to change into. Natsu patiently waited as she disappeared into the bathroom and reemerged in her pajamas.

He leapt down from the bed so she could shuffle under the covers, leaping up to situate himself on top when she was settled. There wasn't a lot of room for him to lay and Natsu was forced to lay parallel to Lucy, on his belly, to make as much room as possible, and to hopefully not squish and suffocate the blonde by accident. A pale arm wrapped itself over his back and Lucy pulled herself closer so she could cuddle to his side, her head resting near where his shoulder met his neck.

"Thank you…for not leaving me, too." She whispered into his fur, light breathing followed soon after. He curled his neck around so that his head could cradle her own on the pillow. Natsu inhaled, the scent of fresh pine and lavender washing over him before, he too, fell blissfully asleep. _You're welcome._

* * *

Natsu forged ahead on the path to Magnolia. The snow had built up during the past night and had become difficult to trudge through. While he could have easily glided across the top of the snow with ease, Lucy wouldn't have been able to with her heavy footfalls. Digging a paw into the ground with each step he took, Natsu created a path of densely packed snow for her to walk across. He looked back and peered through the dark to see the blonde doctor still a good distance behind and stopped forging his path to trot back to her.

Even with the path he had left for her, Lucy still struggled to free her boots when she sunk into the ground. Looking up at his approach, he raised his chin up and exaggerated his trot across the surface of the snow in a gallant fashion.

"Show off." Lucy's scoff became a yelp when she sunk into the snow once more, waving her hands in the air to keep from falling over. Natsu dived to where her body was leaning forward to become her anchor. The blonde caught herself on his shoulder and thanked him before continuing her journey into town. He remained by her side for the rest of the way and thought back on Lucy's determination to leave way before the sun had even attempted to rise, saying she didn't want to make her patients wait on her account.

When they finally made it to town, Lucy was slightly out of breath at his side but that didn't stop her from smiling and waving greetings to everyone they came across on the way. People even called out to him, some offering selections of food they thought he might like. Hearing their names being called, children began running up to greet him and he was already lowering himself down so the smaller ones were able to climb on his back for a short ride. The older kids walked at his side, reaching out to pat at his side and head.

Macy tugged on his ear from her position at the very front of his back. "Go faster, Coal. Faster!" The rest of the children yelled in combined agreement, and after a stern warning to be careful from Lucy, he was jogging off down the sidewalk. Macy and the two others upon his back squealed their excitement while the rest attempted to race beside him, saying they were going to beat him this time for sure. The veterinary was coming up from down the road and he teasingly sped up a bit before slowing down in an elaborate show of exhaustion. The kids raced ahead of him, tagging the sidewalk in front of the building before jumping up and down in delighted excitement. Macy pat him on the top of the head in sympathy.

"Next time, Coal. You'll get faster for sure! That was your bestest time yet!" Natsu lowered himself to the ground to deposit the kids and nuzzled at their cheeks and faces. The rest came up to surround him, giving him final pats and scratches before running back home. He sat and watched them go as Lucy came up to join him.

"Remember the first time you were bombarded by the little rascals?" She asked jokingly.

He remembered. He'd been cautious walking back into town. A wounded and seemingly disabled wolf was one thing, but Natsu knew he was a lot bigger than most average-seen wolves. There wasn't any reason for the townspeople to not think of him as a dangerous animal; yet, parents allowed their children to walk up and greet him, although they stood a safe distance away. Still, the people in this town were like Lucy, too trusting of anything unknown to them. Or perhaps it was Lucy's judgement that they trusted. Either way, he had grown to adore the tiny pups.

Lucy opened the door to the veterinary and held it open for him. "Ready?" He strolled in without a second thought, inhaling with a deep refreshing breath as he did. Natsu didn't care what people might have thought of his actions, this was the nicest smelling hospital he had ever been to. The entire area seemed to be imbued with traces of Lucy and her magic.

Lucy walked off with the head veterinary nurse, Aries, and left him to his own devices. He padded over to behind the desk to greet Plue and the old dog raised his head in greeting before going back to his nap. Slightly disappointed that Plue didn't wish to hold a conversation with him, Natsu walked back out to the waiting room to greet the patients and guests.

A voice called his name from the end of the room. Mrs. Peterson possessed a short, frail stature that forced many people to look down to make eye contact. Her hair had long since greyed out and was wrapped up in a neat bun at the top of her head. In her lap, rested a light brown cat. Snuffles.

If Mrs. Peterson was the kindest old lady he had ever met, Snuffles was as vile as the abominations from the depths of Tartaros. Snuffles was a, 'Selkirk Rex' Lucy had said. And he was fat. Natsu made sure to sit a safe distance away so the cat wouldn't jump and attempt to scratch his eyeballs out like last time. Lucy would by cross with him if he ate one of her patients.

It was while he was enduring another one of Mrs. Peterson's many stories of when she was thirty years younger that a flier on the hospital's tack board caught his eye. Interrupting the middle of Mrs. Peterson's speaking, Natsu walked up to the board and felt his heart drop to his stomach. **'Lost'** was printed across the top of the page in large, bold letters, below it was a picture of a familiar looking black wolf and at the bottom was a phone number.

(324) 791-8245

Fairy Tail's emergency number for the human world.

"Oh, that." Mrs. Peterson said, glancing at what had enraptured his attention. "Yes, I saw the sign up this morning. I was going to tell Dr. Heartfilia about it during Snuffles appointment. I'm sorry to see you going so soon, honey. You've become a large part of Dr. Heartfilia's life now, you know. But you must be excited to be heading home soon, no?"

He couldn't hear her. Not yet. It was too soon. He didn't want to leave yet. After everything that-

_Thank you…for not leaving me, too._

It was too soon. Reaching up, he ripped the poster from the board and raced to behind the lobby desk to trash it.

"Coal? What's wrong?" _Shit. _Natsu skidded to a stop before he could crash into the object of his inner turmoil. Lucy frowned down at him and eyed the paper in his possession. "What is that?"

Cornered, he did the only thing he could think of: he ate the paper. "Coal! Stop that!" She was immediately kneeling in front of him to pry his jaws open. Natsu refused to open his mouth for her to find the lost poster, giving in only when he was finished swallowing.

Frowning at his empty mouth, Lucy released him. "You're going to give yourself indigestion, Coal." He ignored her and stepped forward to lean his head on top of and over her shoulder. She didn't question his actions and hugged him in return. "It's okay. Whatever's bothering you, we'll get through it together, okay?" He dug his head deeper into her hair, breathing in her comforting scent.

A minute longer and Lucy was already releasing her hold from around him, much to his disappointment. Wiping imaginary dust from the lapels of her doctor's coat she said, "Now, how about we go greet Mr. Snuffles for his appointment?" He gagged.

* * *

Coal was acting weirder than normal. He was constantly tense and had become glued to her side everywhere she went, more than usually. On the way home, he walked so close to her side that she could feel his fur brush against her hip every so often, he didn't bother to scout ahead once. Even now, as she played her song for him, he was staring at her so intently and deeply that she felt her voice accidently crack on a note in embarrassment. But not even that deterred his fixated look.

He stayed in her bed that night, though he was much more tense than the previous time, and she hugged him to herself tighter, wishing she could understand what was on his mind. It was only as Lucy was drifting off to a fitful sleep that she felt him finally move. A wet nose nudged at the hair draped over her forehead and Coal shifted his body in her hold to cuddle more closely, whining softly. She wanted to whisper assurances to him, to comfort him, but sleep had taken its hold on her and was dragging her deeper into unconsciousness. She succumbed to its embrace.

The following morning, rather than Coal pouncing her awake, Lucy was roused from sleep by hard knocking on the front door. She made to get out of bed when something obstructed her from leaving. Coal laid curled up in a tight ball, head resting on her waist above the covers. His heavy snoring had Lucy clamping a hand over her mouth to smother her giggles, not wanting to wake him. Controlling herself, Lucy gently lifted Coal's head and snuck out from underneath him. The pounding on the door sounded more insistently and Lucy deposited the wolf's head back upon the bed softly before heading down to answer the door.

She was fully expecting Loke to be behind the door and was surprised when, instead, a petite woman with slightly wavy blue hair held back by an orange bandana stood before her, a slip of poster paper in hand. Before Lucy could get a word out, the young woman was thrusting the paper into her face, a familiar wolf decorating the page.

"Have you seen this wolf anywhere?"

* * *

**AN: So, I have a challenge for any of you that are interested :D. If any of you can guess what Fairy Tail's emergency number stands for, I'll PM you a sneak peak of the next chapter. Hope you enjoyed this chapter! See you next week!**


	5. Act I, Ch V

**Thank you so much to everyone that reviewed, faved, & followed since I updated the last chapter! **

**To the following reviewers:**

**itsxoi, ****CathJorda, ****Dark Shining Light, KJacket, Maddison M H, aliciacevbra, UnitedOsprey1991, NerdmomDM, & Guest. Thank you all so much for your commentary and feedback, it really encourages me to keep writing more chapters as fast as I can XD. **

**To CathJorda, yes, I try to update Our World regularly on Sundays. :)**

**With that said, enjoy!**

* * *

It was no secret that Lucy didn't get many visitors, considering the location of her residence. That this woman would travel all this way put Lucy on edge and planted a tiny seed of regret at the harshness of her next words. "I'm sorry, what did you say your name was?"

The blue-haired woman seemed surprised at her tone, which further cemented Lucy's guilt, and rifled through the red handbag at her side. "Right, sorry. I'm Levy McGarden, head researcher at the Fairy Tail Wildlife Conservation Center." She handed over an identification card and Lucy glanced at the card to confirm the young woman's words before returning it, confused.

"I wasn't aware there was a conservation center near Magnolia. I'm Lucy Heartfilia. I work as a veterinarian at the Magnolia Veterinary Hospital." She held out her hand for the other woman to shake.

Levy returned her handshake and said, "It's nice to meet you, Dr. Heartfilia, and we try to keep a low profile at Fairy Tail to ensure the safety of our animals. You know how all those pesky tourists are, wanting to take pictures of everything." She laughed.

Lucy laughed hesitantly before questioning, "What does this have to do with Coal?"

Her inquire stopped the woman's laughter and now Levy looked confused. "Coal?" Lucy gestured to the poster in her hands.

"Oh! He's one of ours." Lucy's heart sank. "He ran off in the middle of the night and-" Something past the door caught Levy's attention and, before Lucy could stop the smaller woman, she was pushing herself into the house.

Lucy opened her mouth to yell at the blue-haired woman when the sight of Coal at the bottom of the stairs stopped her. The downcast look on his face broke her already sunken heart and she wasn't able to get a word out before Levy was grabbing the wolf by the ear and dragging him out the door.

"Sorry about this. I'll be right back." Levy's tone was absolute; she wasn't allowed to follow, and as Lucy watched the duo disappear into the tree line she could only think about how Coal didn't resist once as Levy pulled him away.

* * *

Natsu roughly shook himself out of Levy's hold when they were safely out of sight. Before he could retort to her harsh handling of the situation, a bundle of clothes fell at his feet. "Change."

He huffed before flexing his muscles to will the change over himself on the spot. A shoe hit him on the forehead. "Not here, you idiot!" Natsu ignored her and groaned at the familiar ache of muscles condensing and bones rearranging. This was the longest time he had ever held his wolf form and changing back _hurt_. When he was back in his own flesh and skin, he sighed in contentment and stretched. Grabbing the clothes Levy brought for him, he changed swiftly before getting hit by a pounding headache. It felt like his head was being struck with a hundred needles.

"Aaargh! Levy! Quit it!" He roared, clutching at his head. She lowered her hands, yellow mist disappearing from her fingertips before frowning.

"She didn't bewitch you?" she questioned.

"NO, you crazy bookworm! Why would you think that?!" He messaged at his temples to alleviate the pain.

"But she's a witch."

_So are you, hypocrite. _He wanted to say, but more pressing matters weighed on his mind. "How'd you find out?"

"You mean you knew?! And didn't bother coming home sooner?!" She questioned, bewildered. At his dispassionate gaze, she sighed and elaborated. "There's a heavily fortified barrier around that house. I couldn't detect it until I exited the tree line, but it seems to cancel out any and all supernatural abilities for whoever's inside it." Natsu thought back to his slow healing factor when he first came across Lucy's house.

"She doesn't know what she is, Levy." A shocked expression covered her face. "I doubt she even knows how to control her power."

"Then she can't stay here." Natsu shut his eyes like he was physically pained.

"The barrier around her house is strong, Natsu. And I mean like ancient strong. I've never come across anything like it in the texts back home. Whatever she is, she's powerful. We can't let this go. We have to tell Master Makarov; bring her to Fairy Tail."

Natsu was shaking his head even before Levy stopped speaking. "No." He peered around from where they were hidden from sight to see the blonde veterinarian frowning in their direction, still waiting. "No, I won't drag her into our world. She has a life here, Levy. A real life that she enjoys. I'm not gonna be responsible for taking that away from her."

Levy frowned at him and put her fists on her hips in frustration. "Then you have to wipe her memory." He knew it was coming, but Natsu still felt his heart freeze and constrict within his chest. "Wipe all memories of you from her mind, so that nothing can trace back to...us."

"I can't." he rasped.

The furrow in her brow loosened and the hardened look in her eyes was replaced with pity. "Can't or won't? Cause from where I'm standing the choice should be obvious."

"It's not." He whispered, still gazing at the blonde.

Before he knew what was happening, Levy was gripping his shirt in her hands and pulling his face down to meet her own angry one. Red blossomed across her cheeks and her brows were brought down in a deep furrow. "WAKE UP, NATSU! You can't honestly expect to stay with her forever can you?! How about us? Are you just going to abandon us?! Your family! We miss you, and….and…." Her grip on his shirt slackened and she sobbed.

"Fairy Tail's been attacked." She croaked.

Natsu felt his heart stop beating in his chest and it was his turn to grip her shoulders and shake her. "What do you mean, attacked?! What happened?!" Anger shadowed his face in deep grooves and he was ashamed his reaction only caused the young woman to cry harder.

"It was Phantom Lord." She rubbed at her red eyes and sniffled. "They ambushed us. Said they had a score to settle. Gajeel...Gajeel!" She sobbed again.

Natsu pulled her against his chest for a hug, angry at himself, a faint memory of the Phantom Vampires chasing him before he met Lucy coming to mind. "Is everyone okay?" He asked, trying to control his body from shaking in anger.

She nodded against his chest and took heaving breaths to calm herself. "Gajeel came out of critical before I left. Other than that, there were just some minor injuries. Please come home. Everyone's so worried."

He nodded and let out a relieved sigh. "Okay, Levy. I'll come home. Just, let me say goodbye." Levy nodded once more and followed him back to the house, never taking her eyes off him.

* * *

The forlorn expression on Lucy's face when she didn't see 'Coal' fractured his heart almost as much as hearing his family was attacked. The thought of Fairy Tail under siege put his heart under a vice-grip and he took a deep breath to keep the anger from expressing itself across his face. He didn't want Lucy's last memory of him to be associated with rage.

"I'm sorry about earlier, Dr. Heartfilia. This is Natsu Dragneel. He's...uh…Coal's personal handler." Levy introduced.

"It's nice to meet you, Mr. Dragneel." She flashed him a tense smile. "You don't have to use the name I gave him." she added, sadly. "I'm sure he responds to a different name? And, please, call me Lucy."

"It's a nice name." He defended. "And you can just call me Natsu, if you want."

They remained in awkward silence for a moment when Lucy perked and ran back inside with a shout for them to stay where they were. Natsu didn't move from his spot. He no longer had the right to step inside her house in his current state. She returned soon after, his worn satchel in her grip and he mentally kicked himself for forgetting it...again.

"I'm assuming this belongs to you then?" She smiled. "You'll be happy to know that Coal guarded it well. He's very loyal."

He took the bag from her, rotating it in his grip to examine it and held it up for her to see. "Do you want to see what's inside?"

Lucy looked shocked and waved her hands in front of herself nervously. "No, that's alright. Coal was really protective of it; so, it must be really important to you. You don't have to."

He laughed at her response. "It's alright. I don't mind showing you." Natsu unbuckled the bag and took out his white-scaled scarf. Unraveling the cloth, he wrapped it around his neck and sighed at its comfortable presence.

"It was a gift from my dad." He explained at her curious expression.

"It suits you."

"Thanks."

"Almost as much as your pink hair." she joked.

"Hey!" He said mock-angrily. "It's salmon, you know! Salmon!"

"Right." Lucy laughed. Natsu ended up laughing with her and, for just a second, it was like before Levy never found him. It was just Coal and Lucy.

As their laughter died off, Lucy asked hesitantly, "Since you'll be taking him back to the conservation center. Would it be alright if I said goodbye?"

Natsu tensed and he rubbed at the back of his neck nervously. "I don't think that would be a good idea." He felt his heart fall along with Lucy's expression at his words and wished that he could take them back and just tell her. 'It's me! I'm Coal.' But Levy's stare seared itself into his back and kept him grounded to reality, desperately willing him to wrap it up and compel Lucy to forget. Fairy Tail was waiting.

"Actually,-" Lucy looked up and his onyx eyes were met with her own brown, forlorn ones. "-I could take a message?" He mentally slapped himself. _He was such an idiot_.

Lucy smiled at his attempt to pacify her. "Could you tell him...tell him to stop eating things that will give him indigestion? He seems to have an affiliation with wanting to eat paper and charred foods. And he seems to suffer from motion sickness, so try to keep him away from moving vehicles. He also likes it when I sing to him before bed. I don't know if you have anyone that will take the time to do that, but maybe keep that in mind? Tell him that everyone in town will miss him and that, whenever he feels like running away again, the doggie door is always open."

"Yeah...I'll let him know. Thanks, Lucy. For everything." He turned and walked away before he had the chance to convince himself to stay.

Levy jogged to keep up with his long strides. "You didn't do it. You didn't compel her. Why?"

"Is it so bad that I want her to remember at least some part of me? Gajeel'd agree with me if he were here. And don't say he wouldn't." He said when she opened her mouth to interject. "He might have scrap-iron for brains and a cold heart, but it's a heart all the same. He wouldn't want you to forget about 'im."

He wasn't going to add that he had already tried mind compulsion on the blonde once and she had broken from his hold easily. There'd be no way Levy would agree to just leave Lucy as she was if that were the case. Levy was really serious when it came to the rules of the guild. She'd want to drag Lucy back for being a potential threat and if the blonde didn't agree to join the guild, they'd wipe her memories, or worse, the Council would take her. No, he wouldn't make Lucy choose between this life and her own. Plus, a guilty part of himself wanted Lucy to keep the memories they had made together. It wasn't ideally what he had in mind, but Coal was technically him all the same. The lucky bastard.

"I know you're a stickler for the rules, Levy, but just this once, please don't tell anyone about Lucy being a witch. Please?" He pleaded.

Keeling at his puppy-eyed look, Levy sighed next to him. "First of all, I am not a stickler for the rules. Second, the rules are there to keep us _safe_. It'd go against my right as a member of the guild to keep something so important from the guild master." His face fell at her response.

"But," Natsu's ears perked. "In accordance with my first statement, I'll let this one instance slide." She looked up at him with a small smile. "She's a good person, Natsu. I can see why you like her. We'll just have to trust your judgement on this one."

A wide smile spread across his face at her words and he let out a whoop. "Thank you, Levy!"

"Don't thank me, yet." She said sternly. "In order for us to keep her secret, you can't be allowed to see her anymore. It'd raise suspicion and unwanted attention. Do you understand?"

Natsu nodded solemnly. "Yeah. Yeah, okay." He mentally apologized for not properly making any promises, but he wasn't going to be deterred so easily.

* * *

Natsu couldn't help but hurry his steps as they neared home. Ducking through the underbrush and foliage masking the entrance, Natsu leaped across the border, the barrier set by their Runes Witch, Freed Justine, enabling him access. The barrier encompassing Fairy Tail's borders was outwardly disguised to blend in with the forest surroundings to block any humans from crossing into their lands and to keep their enemies out. Only members, or those invited by members, were permitted access.

White yurts encompassed the majority of the vast campground and served as the quarters for many of the permanent residents of Fairy Tail. Natsu's own yurt was a deep red in color (by his own request) and was situated on the other side of camp, near the infirmary and close to the Southern border. The largest tent in the middle represented the main dining and meeting hall while Fairy Tail's flag waved proudly from atop.

Scanning the campground, Natsu was happy to see his family had bounced back fairly quickly in the aftermath of the Phantom Lord attack, nothing seemed to be destroyed or in the process of rebuilding; so, Freed's barrier must have held. With that in mind, he waited for Levy to cross the border and say she was going to check on Gajeel and would meet him at the guild hall before sprinting for the guild hall. Many people shouted and waved to him on the way, welcoming him back. Natsu waved in turn but didn't stop to chat before he was throwing the flaps to the hall open in a rather dramatic flair.

He didn't get a chance to look for Gramps before he found himself wrestling with a giant midnight black wolf. Natsu grunted as they rolled on the floor and attempted to clamp a hand on the wolf's muzzle.

"GET OFF ME, ICE-PRINCESS!" The wolf snarled louder in his face before a metal gauntlet clenched down on its scruff, hauling its writhing form off of him. Natsu didn't get a second of reprieve before he, too, was grabbed by the back of his shirt and swung around to knock heads with his frenemy. The two went down with a pained groan.

"**Where have you been, Natsu?"** The voice sent a shiver down Natsu's spine, and he shakily looked up.

"He-Hey, Erza." He gulped. "Long time, no see." The wolf form on the floor next to him shifted and stretched until Gray was in his humanoid form, butt-naked.

"Don't be a smart-ass, Flame Breath. We could have used you in the last battle, if you weren't spending your time frolicking with humans." Gray spit out, laying his forearms on his folded legs, not bothering to get up for some clothes.

Erza slapped Gray upside the head. "Would you put on some clothes already?! Where's your common decency?!"

Gray yelped and scrambled away, Juvia following close behind with a stack already prepared in hand. The red-head swerved to lecture him as well, but he cut her off before she had the chance, "How bad was it? Levy told me about Gajeel."

Erza lowered her raised fist with a pensive look on her face. "Not bad, they weren't able to get past the barrier before we intercepted them on the Western side. Gajeel was cleared from the infirmary today and should make a full recovery." He nodded.

"It's my fault. I ran into a group of them when I was making that errand for Porly. One of Tartaros showed up and wiped them out."

Erza's face quickly became grave and he added, quickly, "I dealt with it. He's dead."

She nodded and the tension eased from her shoulders. "Master's waiting for you in his office."

Natsu bobbed his head in acceptance and made to move toward the back of the guild hall when Erza gripped his arm. "Welcome home, Natsu."

"I'm home."

Master Makarov office was located down the hallway behind the bar and, after a quick wave to Mira, he opened the door to the room and entered. "Hey, Gramps. Miss me?"

Fairy Tail's guild master was a tiny man with hair that had long since grayed out, but that didn't keep the master from remaining spry and capable of leading the guild. Natsu respected the man and saw him as his own grandfather, everyone in the guild did. Master Makarov practiced what was known as 'high magick' and was well known for his magical capabilities with Giant, a type of caster magic.

Natsu wasn't able to see the master from behind his the stacks of paperwork on the desk until he hopped from his seat and walked around his desk to regard Natsu. "You disappear for over a month without a word, making your family think you've died in a ditch somewhere and you come bouncing into my office with a smile on your face?" Natsu gulped at the master's grave expression.

In a complete one-eighty, Gramps was smiling a large smile and patting Natsu's knee. "Well done, my boy! For once you're not the cause of all my paperwork! Keep up the good work."

Natsu laughed but quickly sobered, fire coursing through his veins. "Sorry, I wasn't here when you needed me, Gramps. I coulda beat all those stupid Phantom Vamps to hell and back!"

Makarov nodded gravely. "Yes, Gajeel intercepted the enemy first before they could reach our borders, and was almost staked in the heart for his troubles. You kids are going to give this old man a heart attack one of these days."

"Got to keep you on your toes somehow, old man." Natsu jokes.

"Yes, well, do you mind giving this 'old man' an idea as to where you've been for the past month? Erza and Gray won't show it, but they've been very worried about you."

"I've been… with a friend."

At that moment, Levy burst into the office, out of breath. "I can...vouch...for him master!"

Makarov peered around Natsu to the tiny witch. "Ah, Levy. I was wondering where you were. Thank you for bringing Natsu back. I couldn't trust Gray or Erza to go retrieve him without more property damage and more….paperwork!" He cried.

Levy sweat dropped before a larger form entered the office behind her. "Nice try, old geezer. You ain't gonna get the shrimp to do your stupid papers with that sob story."

The new arrival placed his arm on Levy's head, using her as a hand rest and Levy folded her arms across her chest in disgruntlement.

A big, toothy smile spread across Natsu's face and he waved, "Hey, Gajeel! Glad to see you're not dead anymore."

"I was never dead in the first place you flaming idiot!" The large vampire snapped. "And where have you been? I beat down more enemies than you did so you can add that to my score."

"Hey! It doesn't count if I wasn't there to fight, too!" Natsu roared back stepping up to meet the taller man.

Getting between the two, Levy shouted, "Knock it off!" Spinning to face Gajeel, she poked at his chest. "You're not supposed to be fighting in your condition, so save it for later." Gajeel squawked and opened his mouth to argue when Levy's glare shut him up. Natsu snickered behind Levy's back.

Makarov cleared his throat. "Well, it's good to have you back, Natsu. Levy, if you'd give me your report? The rest of you, GET OUT!"

Gajeel grumbled about 'tiny people being so bossy' and left first, Natsu following after him. Before closing the door behind him, he glanced at Levy with a questioning look and was happy to see her wink at his silent inquiry. Lucy's secret was safe.

* * *

After making his rounds and getting glomped by both humanoid and wolf forms alike, Natsu only had one more stop before he could call it a day. Entering the large, platformed, infirmary tent, Natsu called out a greeting to a tiny form rummaging through supplies in the back. "Hey, Wendy!"

The tiny girl popped her head up from her work and turned to regard who had entered. At the sight of Natsu, tears began to gather at her eyes before she was throwing herself at the older boy. "NATSU!"

Natsu caught her and laughed as he spun them around in circles. Wendy laughed dizzily and stumbled when he set her down. He bent down on his knees. "How've you-"

He wasn't prepared for the punch Wendy swung at his face. Punch was a relative term as the hit had apparently hurt her more than it did him. In fact, he had barely felt it. Natsu was just surprised the small girl in front of him had taken the initiative to swing first. A large smile spread across his face.

"You've been practicing your punching!"

Wendy hissed and shook out her hand. "You were supposed to say 'Ow' you jerk."

At her words, Natsu dramatically clutched at his face, falling to the floor and writhing. "OH! The pain! Wendy, how could you?! I see it! The Light is calling for me! Who will be your favorite patient now, Wendy?! Ooh~ I'm dying~!" The small girl was trying desperately to hold her giggles in before full on laughing. Throwing herself on top of Natsu, she circled her arms around his neck in a hug. He gladly returned it.

"I missed you." she whispered.

"Yeah. Me, too, kiddo." He responded.

Wendy lifted herself up and waited for Natsu to right himself before questioning him, "Then why didn't you come back?"

Natsu wavered for a second. "It's complicated, Wends." He said instead.

Wendy hummed in thought, scrutinizing his expression before smirking. "It's a girl, isn't it?"

Heat filled his cheeks and he, thankfully, didn't sputter on his next words. "No! That's crazy. I'm the oblivious idiot, remember?"

The small witch tapped her chin in thought. "Nah. That's only what you want everyone to think. 'Keeps me out of trouble', you said."

He sighed before ruffling her hair despite her protests. "Why do I tell you these things, again?"

"Cause I'm sweet and adorable?"

Natsu laughed before stooping to throw the small girl over his shoulder. Hanging on to her legs, he spun them around, being mindful to not bump into any of the infirmary beds. Wendy squealed from over his shoulder and he laughed. A rough throat-clearing halted their fun and Natsu slowed to a spot to deposit Wendy back on the floor.

He lifted a hand in greeting. "Hey, Porly! Sorry, I didn't get those herbs ya wanted. Ran into some trouble."

The old woman sniffed. "So, it seems. Trouble that you wouldn't be using to influence poor Wendy, I hope? All you ruffians are so troublesome." A white cat hopped onto the infirmary bed next to Porlyusica and meowed its agreement.

"Nah, Wendy's as tough as they come." Natsu ruffled her hair once more.

Wendy nodded her head enthusiastically, "Yeah! Natsu's going to teach me how to get stronger, so I can fight, too!"

A wicker broom stabbed Natsu in the head and the aging medic was soon chasing him out of the infirmary, "WHAT ARE YOU DOING, CORRUPTING AN INNOCENT GIRL LIKE WENDY?! GET OUT AND GO HOME!"

With a yelp, Natsu scurried outside, but not before hearing Wendy yell, "Tell me all about her later, Natsu!"

Natsu rubbed at his forehead and hissed as he made his way to his personal quarters. "Damn, old witch." His own yurt was located fairly close to the infirmary, so he leisurely made his way there. The yurt was, like most, situated on a wooden platform and had a small wooden ramp leading up to the entry flaps. His was a deep red in color with splashes of orange and yellow to seem like flames - his own personal touch that he was very proud of. Opening the flap, Natsu took a deep breath and exhaled, he was home. His hammock was still hanging on the far right end, elk and bear skins scattered around the floor for when he wanted to sleep as his wolf. Opposite his hammock was his wood stove, the smoke chimney leading to outside his yurt. He never found the need to use it; Mira did all the cooking and he never felt the need to cuddle up to the stove for warmth. The only other furnishing he possessed was a waist-high, wooden drawer Erza insisted he have to keep his spare clothes in.

Glancing around, shirts, pants, socks, and even his boxers were scattered around the floor in 'organized' chaos and he threw his satchel into the mix. It was so much easier to reach off the floor to grab whatever he needed, rather than searching through the stupid drawer, anyway. Content that everything was as he left it, Natsu made his way to his hammock, smiling when he found what he was looking for.

Curled in a tight ball was a blue cat. He didn't mean Russian blue either. Happy was _sky-blue_. The only other part of him that wasn't was his belly, socks, and the tip of his tail, all of which were a clear white.

Picking Happy up, Natsu winced when the cat promptly awoke and leaped from his hands and into his hair. Natsu got a face full of fur as Happy hung from the strands of his hair, the rest of his body dangling in front of Natsu's face.

"OW! Happy get off my head! You're ripping out my hair!" Natsu reached out to yank the cat from his head. The cat, in response, released a deep growl and dug his claws in deeper.

Natsu sighed and released the cat's body, letting him dangle. "I'm sorry I didn't come back. You're only one in a hundred other people I've had to say that to today. Could you let go now?"

Placated, for now, Happy released his grip and allowed Natsu to help him situate himself on the pink-head's shoulder. Purring, the cat butt his head against Natsu's chin, finally welcoming him home. Scratching him behind Happy's ears, Natsu made to lay down on his hammock for a much needed nap. "Thanks, little buddy."

* * *

The cold frosted the air and the night delved the forest into shadow, but Natsu was neither bothered by the chill nor the dark. He knew where he was going.

The tree line began to thin out and he hunkered down and kept to the shadows. Situating himself in the underbrush, Natsu gazed out to the lonesome cabin down below. A single light was lit on the top floor and he breathed a sigh of relief, knowing exactly which room the light was illuminating.

He strained his ears to listen and was disappointed to learn that Lucy would not be playing her song once again, tonight.

'_Dude, what the hell?'_

The time it took Natsu to tense, swerve, and tackle the other wolf that had followed him could have fit within the span of a second.

The two dark forms went crashing to the snowy ground and Natsu bared his fangs, pinning the other wolf.

'_Stop, you idiot! It's me!'_

Natsu ceased growling, but didn't let up his hold. _'What the hell are you doing here, Ice-Frost?'_

'_I should be asking you that. Stalking girls at night? Never pegged you as the type.'_

Natsu huffed and roughly released his hold. Gray got to his feet and shook his fur out. _'It's none of your business.' _

He turned to go back to Fairy Tail, pacified that Lucy had made it home safe, and Gray followed after casting the house one last look. _'On the contrary, Erza sent me.'_

Natsu felt the fur on his back bristle in agitation. _'She tell you to lecture me, too?'_

Gray sighed and moved to walk side-by-side with him. _'Look, man. You've been making these nightly visits ever since you got back. It's been over a week now, Natsu. Maybe it's time to move on. She doesn't need you to be her guardian angel.'_

Natsu tensed, but continued his gait. No more was said between them.

* * *

"Dr. Heartfilia? You have another patient waiting for you in room three." Brown eyes shifted from where they had been reviewing a patient's file for the fifth time to peer tiredly at the nurse that called for her.

"Could you please have Aries take this one?"

The nurse looked at the blonde in concern and said nervously, "Ms. Aries is on break right now, Dr. Heartfilia."

"Right…Right, I'm sorry." She had forgotten.

"Are you okay. Ma'am? I could get another nurse to take care of it if you would prefer?" The nurse said.

Lucy shook her head. "No, it's alright. I can do it. Thank you." She took the folder the nurse handed her and made her way down to the designated exam room.

Since Coal had left she hadn't been sleeping well. She'd sit out on the porch and listen for the nightly howling of the wolves, hoping one of them would call out to her in familiarity, or that a familiar form would come bounding out of the tree line. Neither happened.

Lucy had heard that it took around half the time you dated someone to get over them, but they didn't seem to have an ideal equation for the time needed to get over a wolf. Great. It wasn't like Mr. Drag-Natsu gave her a number she could use to check up on Coal. She'd just have to let time do the work. She'd get over Coal's absence, eventually.

Clearing her thoughts, Lucy put on her 'doctor's' face and opened the door to room three with a friendly smile across her face.

"Good morning. How are we all doing today?" She asked.

The owner looked up from the book he was reading, brushing a strand of his long, unruly dark hair out of his face. The majority, of which, was tied up in a high ponytail. At his feet, laid a large blonde wolf with odd black spots scattered across its body.

"Quite well." The man replied.

"That's good." Lucy turned to deposit her items on the counter and reached in one of the cabinets for a pair of clean gloves. "We're here for an appointment for…" She peered at the top of the folder. "...Jackal?"

* * *

**See you all next time!**


	6. Act I, Ch VI

**...This chapter is way overdue. I can't say anything other than life happens and leave it at that. I haven't had the time to properly edit this chapter so this will have to do for now. I didn't really want to hold it off any longer. Can't say if there will be a chapter being released this Sunday, but I'll try. Anyway, thank you to everyone who reviewed since the last chapter release. You guys are all amazing and I really appreciate the support! Enjoy!**

* * *

"You're doing it again."

Natsu glanced up at the white-haired barmaid over the rim of his mug. "Doing what?"

Mira finished drying the glass in her hands and reached for another one. "Thinking."

A dark-haired man two stools away scoffed into his drink. "I think you're confusing the idiot with the wrong intellectual species, Mira."

Said person stood abruptly from his seat, sending his stool clattering to the ground. He had Gray's shirt fisted in his fist in just a under a few long strides. "What's that supposed to mean, frostbite? You got a death wish?"

Mirajane tsked in a chiding manner from across the bar but remained silent. Though she was known among many of the members of the guild as a mother-figure of sorts, this was a situation someone only as thick-headed as Natsu could solve.

Gray reached up and gripped Natsu's wrist in a tight clench. Straightening his spine, he rose to his full height, towering over the pinkette. "You're pathetic."

Natsu bunched the fabric in his fist tighter, not minding the sound of tearing seems. "You want to say that-"

"Shut up. I'm talking right now." The tone in Gray's voice dropped low. Ice-cold, low. "You barely eat. All you do is sleep and laze around all day, and you're constantly checking up on _her._ Goddamnit, Natsu! What's so special about this girl?! She's got you all wrapped around her finger, and you're letting her get away with it like an idiot!"

Natsu remained silent to Gray's griping. Neither broke eye-contact and continued to stare the other down. From where she was sitting, clutching Carla to her chest, Wendy nervously turned to the red-headed werewolf seated next to her.

"Shouldn't we do something Erza?"

Erza delicately broke off the edge of her strawberry cake and chewed on the piece slowly, appreciating the taste and texture. She swallowed before answering, "I, too, believe Natsu has sulked in misery enough."

With that said, she went back to consuming her slice of cake. Wendy remained rigid in her seat and peered worriedly at the two boys. The sight of her family fighting had never appealed to her. Sure, the guild would brawl and rough house together with swinging fists and loud shouts. Those she could handle. It was the silent fights that put her on edge.

The two continued to glare at one another in irritation. "I'm not wrapped around her finger." Natsu mumbled.

Gray scoffed. "Could have fooled me."

"Look, you freezer-brain, Lu-"

"HELP! Somebody help!"

The flaps to the guild hall were thrown open with a resounding 'swoosh' and Romeo ran in. His face was white with panic and sweat dripped from his brow as he heaved for air, tripping over his own feet. Natsu was there to catch the alarmed boy before he could kiss the floor.

He could hear the Romeo's heart thundering in his chest faster than a panicked rabbit and his forehead pinched in concern. "What's wrong, Romeo?"

"-apids…" Romeo took a deep breath and attempted to alleviate his racing heart. "North-west border…*pant* rapids….Master Makarov…*pant*...Tartaros."

Natsu handed Romeo over to a panicked Macao and was racing out the hall in seconds.

* * *

The Fiore Rapids represented the border between the guilds under the control of the Council and the dark guilds. The river stretched for miles across the country of Fiore and while it was a physical representation of the border between the two sides, that never deterred the dark guilds from sneaking across to antagonize the weak.

Twenty feet across, the speed of the current never dropped below fifty miles per hour and was a significant deterrent for any wandering humans. For a supernatural being, it was little more than a hopscotch jump to cross.

"I only ask that you hand the boy over, Makarov. He is of no consequence to you."

"If you really think I'd had over one of my children to your filthy claws, you can go back to the pits of hell, Mard Geer." Makarov sneered.

On the bank across the turbulent waves Mard Geer scoffed. "What you call family is a lie. You are all just a pack of inferior mongrels that must be purged from this world, and to accomplish that..." He held his hand out. "...Zeref requires his little brother back."

Makarov seethed. Like hell he was going to just hand over Natsu to those abominations, but it didn't look like Mard Geer would be taking 'no' as an answer. Geer was a known practitioner of the black arts: the Underworld King, and he possessed the skill to back up his confidence in coming alone. At least, Makarov hoped he had. Mard Geer's magic was so pungent that it cloaked his surroundings in at least a ten foot radius. Even for Makarov's skills, the aura casted imperceptible shivers down his spine. He only hoped Romeo had made it back to the guild unharmed.

"Gramps!" Multiple footfalls crunched down on the scattered leaves of the forest floor and multiple bodies appeared from the density of the treeline and came to a stop along the bank.

Being the first to emerge from the treeline, Natsu gave the master a quick scan with his eyes and relaxed minisculely when there were no visible injuries that he could detect. Turning his sights to the lone figure across the border, Natsu could feel a growl build up at the back of his throat.

Mard Geer opened his arms as if expecting an embrace. "Natsu. Have you come to return home?"

"I already gave Jackal my answer, asshole. And if you don't want to end up like him then I suggest you back _off._"

The dark mage lowered his raised arms, a disgusted frown forming on his face at Natsu's words. "That would be a shame. Jackal was one of Zeref's more...obsolete trials." He rubbed at his temple as if relieving a forming headache and sighed exasperatedly. "Unfortunately, that has yet to change since his revival."

Natsu's brow furrowed in confusion. "Jackal's dead. His body can't revive itself." He paused to think about it. "None of you can."

Mard Geer smirked smugly. "Yes, Zeref had been driving himself absolutely _mad_ over our limitations. Thanks to Jackal's sudden passing, our small health complication has since been...rectified. You can come out now." He called over his shoulder.

Seeing Mard Geer once again had sent Natsu's mind into such an enraged stupor that he had forgoed discerning if there were any nearby threats. If he had, he would have realized that besides Mard Geer's there were two more heartbeats situated behind the treeline. Straining his ears, he could pick out the excited skip of one of the beating organs. The other was much faster and skipped around frantically in fear and anxiety. He didn't have to contemplate the new arrivals' heartbeats when they were finally revealed from the shadows of the trees. Natsu felt his own heart freeze and plummet to his feet.

Jackal was alive, and the vampire-werewolf hybrid had gone through severe physical alterations. Wolf ears adorned the sides of his head and Natsu could spot a fluffed tail dragging behind him, both of which were the same dark mustard color. Wolf-like appendages replaced his once human legs and blacks claws protruded from his fingers. Jackal's new developments didn't concern Natsu as much as the fact that one of his clawed hands was wrapped around the slender neck of the blonde woman he was dragging in front of him.

Lucy's wrists were tied together in front of her and limited her movements as she kicked and violently squirmed in Jackal's grasp. Muffled shrieks escaped from around the cloth gag between her teeth as Jackal's other arm wrapped around her waist to pick her up, carrying her the rest of the way from out of the shadows and to the edge of the bank. The blonde woman's kicking got a lucky hit in when the heel of her boot slammed back into Jackal's shin, and Natsu felt a bead of pride when the hybrid displayed a physical wince of pain, but that pride soon morphed into anger when Jackal forced Lucy to face him with the hold he had around her neck and back-handed her across the face, sending her toppling to the ground.

"Bitch." Natsu heard him murmur.

Lucy didn't let the hit affect her and was struggling to her knees to make a run for it. However, her determined face scrunched in pain and a muffled scream escaped her when claws fisted her hair, pulling her to a kneeling position. Natsu was already moving to jump to the other side when arms clamped across his chest and pulled him back.

"Let her go, Jackal!" He screamed over the roaring of the rapids.

The hybrid ignored him and squatted next to the blonde, not relinquishing his hold on her hair. "Hey, bro. Not happy to see me?" A gleeful grin spread across Jackal's face at Natsu's silent seething. "You never said you had a girlfriend. I'm hurt."

Jackal placed his hand against his chest in mock-hurt before releasing Lucy's hair to instead put his arm over her shoulder and pull her into his side, laying his head against hers. "If you want my advice, I'd take better care of where you leave your toys. You never know what could happen if someone came along to...well, tell me-" He flashed Natsu a malicious smirk before dragging his tongue across Lucy's collarbone and up the hollow of her throat, the hand slung across her shoulder reached across and disappeared into the lapels of her doctor's coat. Lucy's eyes squeezed shut and silent tears trailed down her face as she squirmed as far away from the hand as she could.

"-is she as good as she looks?"

Natsu could feel his molars crack with how hard he was clenching his teeth, and two more sets of hands clutched at both of his arms to hold him back. "Bastard!"

"Enough, Jackal. We're here to retrieve Zeref's prize, not satiate whatever deluded fantasy your mind comes up with." Mard Geer pointed out strictly.

Jackal sighed and extracted his hand. "You're no fun, Geer."

Natsu saw Lucy release an imperceptible sigh of relief before Jackal wrapped a hand around her bicep and forced her to her feet, dragging her to the edge of the bank. When they were close enough to the edge, Jackal swung her out in front of him so that she was suspended above the roaring waters of the rapids, the toes of her boots and Jackal's grip the only thing keeping her from falling in. He pulled harder against the grips holding him back, desperate to save the blonde who had given him a home, even if it was for just a short period of time.

"Surrender, Pinky! Or your girlfriend's going for a swim." Jackal hollered.

Makarov pointed a finger at the three holding him back and called back, "Do not let him go, Erza, Gray, Gajeel!"

Natsu whipped his head around to stare at the master in disbelief. "Gramps! She's innocent, goddammit! Let me save her!"

Master Makarov ignored him and calmly turned back to the Tartaros members. "I cannot condone the bargaining of one life for another, _especially _if one of those lives is one of my children. Release the girl and conduct your business elsewhere, or else you will face the might of the Fairy Tail guild." Members of Fairy Tail stepped up to the bank. Werewolves and Vampires snarled and witches prepared spells.

The display did not deter the two dark guild members and Jackal sighed impatiently, "This is getting us nowhere."

He wrenched Lucy back. The force of the pull had her stumbling over her own feet before she fell back into his chest. Gripping the hair at the base of her neck, Jackal wrenched Lucy's head to the side and lowered his mouth to her neck. "You got five seconds to submit before I drain every last drop of the bimbo's blood." He grinned in thought. "Though I wouldn't mind getting a bite anyway. Bet she tastes better than the pink-haired chick."

An image of the timid head nurse flashed in Natsu's mind and Lucy must have been thinking the same thing because she stiffened in Jackal's hold, anguish painting her features. A muffled sob tore itself from Lucy's throat and Natsu felt his heart wrench at the sound. More tears poured down her face and Jackal sniggered, misplacing the reasoning for the veterinarian's anguish. "Don't worry." He cooed. "I'll make it feel _real _good before you die so, try not to die on me too soon, yeah?" Jackal playfully bit down on the shell of her ear.

It happened so fast, even Natsu had some trouble keeping up. He remembered watching as fury morphed over Lucy's face before she was dragging her elbow back into Jackal's diaphragm. The blow wasn't hard enough to do anything but slightly wind the supernatural being, but it distracted him enough for her to kick her heel back into his shin and throw her head into his chin, breaking his hold from around her and making a bee-line back into the forest. Her attempts were in vain, however, and Jackal yanked back on her shoulder, twisting her around. The next part was a blur that ended with Jackal wrenching her head violently to the side and biting down on the junction between her shoulder and neck _hard, _puncturing the skin.

A detheaning roar filled his ears, deep and guttural. It wasn't until he felt his throat grow hoarse that Natsu realized the cry belonged to him. He renewed his struggles against his family members holding him back, desperate to get to the other side. So desperate was he, that he barely registered Master Makarov's yell of "Attack!" until the arms holding him back loosened to follow the order.

Seeing the Fairy Tail members beginning to jump across the border, Mard Geer ushered Jackal to hurry before fading into the shadows. Jackal tisked before unlatching his jaws from Lucy's neck, giving her body a harsh shove away from himself before turning to follow. Lightheaded, the blonde tripped over the edge and fell into the violent waters, the current quickly dragging her away and under. Natsu dived in after her, the rest of Fairy Tail running after the two Tartaros members.

* * *

The water chilled him to the bone, and Natsu was so lost in the myriad of bubbles as the current thrashed him around that he lost track of which way was up or down. He didn't allow himself the chance to panic, however, and swung his arms and legs in wide arcs to catch hold of anything solid to use as a hand-hold while continuously surveying the waters around him for any sign of Lucy.

The sudden feeling of rough bark digging into his back forced what little air he had left in his lungs out and Natsu choked as water began to rush into his mouth. Clawing at the large trunk the current had him pinned to, he heaved himself up and took a deep lungful of air when his head broke the surface. Natsu panted for air and clung to the tree that had fallen across the water way lest the current drag him under once more and frantically searched around the area.

"LUCY!" He yelled. The longer he went without a sign the more frantic his heart beat within his chest, fearing she had been dragged further downstream.

Natsu was just about to let go of his impromptu safety raft when golden strands caught his eye. The sun's reflection off the surface of the water camouflaged the strands, but Natsu wasn't taking the chance to miss saving her on baseless assumptions and began to make his way towards the large rocks where he swore he caught a glimpse of blonde hair.

He paddled through the water, using the log as leverage to keep himself from being swept away and felt his heart give a happy jump in his chest when he saw Lucy's face beneath the waves. The sight of Lucy's unresponsive state instantly dashed his joy of finding her and he was immediately reaching down to grapple for her waist and pull her to shore, worried she had been submerged for too long. Natsu secured the blonde in his arms and made to pull her head from under the water when a resisting force pulled her back. Furrowing his brow and letting out a small yell in frustration he dived beneath the waves once more.

Natsu found Lucy's foot pinned between rocks near the bottom of the river bed, the water buffeting her body against a larger rock at her back. He scratched at the rocks pinning the blonde's leg and gripped it when he had freed her in case the current claimed her once more. Now free, Natsu swam back to the shores of Fairy Tail's territory, unceremoniously heaving the veterinarian's body onto solid ground before pulling himself up as well.

He turned Lucy over so that she laid on her back and delicately untied the cloth digging into the sides of her mouth. After removing the gag and freeing her wrists, Natsu gently cupped Lucy's cheek and caressed the bruises left behind at the corner of her mouth with his thumb before pressing his ear to her chest. Natsu was scared that he would confuse his own frenzied heart beat with her own and pressed his ear down harder when he didn't hear anything. He _couldn't_ hear anything.

_No, no, no, no, no!_

Lacing his hands together, Natsu started compressions, mindful to not use his full strength in his worried state. When pushing down on Lucy's chest didn't seem to be doing anything he didn't hesitate to tilt her head up at an elevated angle. He pried her lips open gently and lowered his mouth down to meet hers when her chest gave a heave and water began pouring from her mouth in large chock fulls. Natsu rotated Lucy's body onto her side as she vomited up lungfuls of water onto the snowy ground until all the water was purged from her lungs and she was left dry heaving, falling back onto her back. Natsu gave a deep sigh of relief when his ears detected the faint heartbeat in Lucy's chest. However, worry once again flooded Natsu's veins when Lucy's eyelids remained tightly shut and she instead began to break out into a cold sweat. Her breathing remained shallow and her heartbeat began to lull back into a decreasingly slow, dull thump rather than it's slow but steady pace from just seconds ago.

The stench of decay reached his sensitive nose and Natsu recoiled when it replaced the natural undertones of Lucy's scent. Tilting her head to the side, he growls at the sight of dark veins crawling up her neck and across her chest like warped spider webs. The ugly veins conjoined at the junction in her neck, where Jackal had bit her and a guilty part of Natsu ate at him with the reminder that it was because of him that the bastard was still alive. Still breathing.

Hybrids, like werewolves, carried venom in their bites, but it was much more potent to both species of vampires and werewolves alike. For a human, even a witch...Lucy wouldn't last much longer. The only known cure for a hybrid bite was with the blood of the hybrid the bite belonged to and Natsu didn't think Jackal was in a sharing mood. Plus, he didn't want that monster anywhere near Lucy.

The skin around puncture marks were bruised in a disgusting pattern deep purple and green. What used to be vibrant red blood oozed out from the two puncture marks as dark pus. The density of the liquid turning to sludge and the color a dark black.

Natsu felt like punching something. The whole situation left him feeling so helpless and Lucy was going to be paying the price for his careless actions. His hands gripped at the base of his pink locks and he tugged in a futile effort to think of a possible solution. There wasn't one. He needed Jackal's blood, goddammit! He needed…

A crazy thought filled his mind and Natsu didn't give himself a chance to think of the repercussions of his actions before he bit down on his wrist, breaking the skin until a steady flow of blood was flowing down his arm. Natsu eyed the red liquid streaming from his wrist and back at the comatose blonde. There was no going back after what he would do, but he found himself not caring. As long as Lucy lived.

Images of the veterinarian playing her violin and singing them both to sleep, welcoming her guests and patients with warmth and love, all these little moments spanning over a short month period fueled Natsu's resolve, and before he could think to hesitate any longer, he lowered his wrist to her open mouth.

A dark form tackled Natsu's body away from its hovering position over the unconscious woman and, rather than falling into its intended target, his blood dropped and stained Lucy's doctor coat instead.

"Get off me!" Natsu wrestled like mad to dislodge whoever had interrupted him. Lucy was dying and they were keeping him from saving her, but his tackler had a tight grip on his arms, pushing his head into the snow.

"Are you crazy, Natsu?! You can't go around turning people!"

Natsu recognized Gray's voice coming from the figure currently holding him down, but continued struggling to return to Lucy's side. "You don't understand, Frostbite! Get off me!"

He inclined his head as far as he could to get a look at the fallen form in the snow and was relieved to see Wendy riding atop Gajeel's shoulders, making their way over. Erza and the rest of Fairy Tail were running along the river bank as well, neither Jackal or Mars Geer in their midst. They had lost them.

Natsu didn't ponder the thought too deeply and instead concentrated on the scene unfolding in front of him as Wendy jumped from Gajeel's shoulders and slid to a stop next to Lucy's still form. The young healer was immediately tearing off the blonde's soaked coat and shirt.

"Erza! Help me take her clothes off. She's slipping into hypothermia." The red-head nodded and got to work shimmying Lucy's pants down her legs. "Blankets! I need blankets or a dried coat!" Wendy shouted to the crowd.

Laxus handed the young healer his fur-lined coat and, once the blonde was left in nothing but her under garments, Wendy placed the heavy coat over her shivering form. From where he was still wrangling with Gray, the putrid smell clinging to Lucy's form was getting worse.

His heart constricted within his chest in a tight vice and his throat closed up and choked him. This was all his fault. Prolonging his stay on a whim when he should have erased himself from her life when he was able. Tartaros had to have been spying on them for days to know where Lucy worked. If what Levy said was true, and Natsu doubted the bookworm was ever wrong, they wouldn't have been able to take Lucy from her home because of the barrier. That means...all those people. Natsu clenched his eyes shut when images of Magnolia's possible destruction flashed in his mind. Innocent lives taken, all because of him. Nurse Aries, those kids, Plue...

_Protect...please, protect._

That was one promise he wasn't going to break. All the self-hate and anger coiled in himself _snapped _and Natsu threw Gray off his back in a surprising display of strength, shrinking the distance between where Gray had dragged him to the members huddled around the fallen body. From behind, the half-werewolf gave a yell of warning to the group, but he ignored it and pushed his way past the crowding bodies. Biting down on his wrist once more, he was at Lucy's side before anyone could interpret Gray's shout and lowered his mouth down to meet her own. Lucy's lips were soft pressed against his chapped ones and he felt guilt eat away at him for tarnishing another part of her.

Forcing her lips open with his own, Natsu deposited the blood he held in his mouth to Lucy's. When she didn't respond he pushed his mouth harder against hers, using his tongue to push the coppery liquid further into her mouth.

_Live. Please. Just live._

From beneath him, Natsu felt Lucy's throat bob as she swallowed.


	7. Act I, Ch VII

**Sorry again for the late update. I think I'll be having to move back updating to every other week, because of my busy schedule. Anyway, thank you to everyone that reviewed, faved, and followed. We have officially made it through Act I, though! It only goes downhill from here XD. I apologize for any grammar mistakes. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Get him off!"

Hands grappled and pulled at his arms and coat — someone even going for his legs, but none dared tug at his scarf to force him away. Everyone knew the scarf was sacred to Natsu and, therefore, off limits. But Natsu held firm until the combined strength of Gajeel, Laxus, and Gray forcibly detached him from the blonde. Breaking the contact where his lips had been molded to Lucy's. The trio dragged the struggling male through the snow and pinned him to the ground. Gajeel and Laxus held down both his arms — the latter of which dug his elbow in between his shoulder blades, and Gray seated himself on his calves.

Wendy was a flurry of motion above the unconscious woman: checking for her heartbeat every other second and working to heal the bite mark on her neck. Her blue hair twirled above her shoulders as a result of using her healing magic and Wendy's brow furrowed in deep concentration. The rest of Fairy Tail watched anxiously from around the scene, Master Makarov and Erza on Lucy's other side. The old master frowned down at the sight of Natsu's blood dripping from the corner of her mouth.

"I'm losing her!" Wendy cried, sweat pouring down her face. Everyone tensed at the young healer's cry and looked to each other for a hopeful solution.

"Maybe if someone goes back to get Porlyusica?" A hopeful voice inquired.

"No, the girl'd be dead before the old witch could get here."

"We have to do something!"

"But what if-"

"Everyone, SHUT UP!" Erza shouted. The area immediately quieted and Erza turned back to the young healer. "How bad is it, Wendy?"

"I don't know how long I can keep the venom from reaching her heart. It's too ingrained in her system." Wendy looked up at where Natsu was being held down, tears in her eyes. "I'm so sorry, Natsu." She choked out.

Natsu jerked against the muscled arms restraining him but the boys held firm, refusing to let him go. Each thump of Lucy's heart was like a ticking time bomb — one that left Natsu anxious and scared that each beat that sounded would be her last. It was obvious his blood wasn't able to counteract the venom in Jackal's bite like he had hoped. He dug his forehead into the cold snow and released a muffled, dry sob. From above, Laxus and Gajeel looked down at the hybrid in pity.

"Stop your magic, Wendy."

The young witch looked up in shock. "What?" Never before had she been told to _not_ try to help heal someone. There were instances where she ran out of magic power, but the situation had always been out of her control. Master Makarov was a kind-hearted man. He would never deny help to anyone who needed it. That was the basis of Fairy Tail's principles: to hold out their hands to those who lacked the strength to pull themselves up.

Everyone, too, appeared shocked at the Master's request. Many gaped and few shouted words of disapproval, including Natsu. "Gramps, what the hell?! Wendy, don't stop! Please! Heal her!" He pleaded, desperately and renewed his struggles.

"Master?" Erza questioned at Makarov's side. The protest on her tongue died off at the grave and determined look on the elder man's face and she reluctantly returned her gaze to the young healer. "Wendy, cease your healing magic."

Wendy immediately shook her head in protest. "I can save her! I can! Please, just….just send someone to get Ms. Porlyusica. She can cure her better than I can. I can hold on for at least that much." She pushed more power into her magic and her hands shook with the exertion. A soft hand gently placed itself on top of Wendy's shaking ones, and Erza lowered their hands to rest lightly on Wendy's lap. The blue light fading from her fingertips as her magic ceased. Natsu released a pained yell at the scene and Wendy lowered her chin down to her chest — her hair curtaining her face and cutting off Natsu's betrayed expression from her peripheral view.

Wendy's eyes burned with tears and her shoulders shook as Erza pulled her into a side-hug. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." She rasped. Wendy didn't know Lucy, hadn't even had the chance to properly talk to the woman but from Natsu's thoughts and words alone, Wendy knew her to be a woman of a loving nature and with an equally fierce determination. What really enraptured Wendy's attention, was learning that Lucy was a veterinarian. A healer like herself, in a sense. Even without having ever talked to her, Wendy still felt that undeniable bond between themselves.

Erza gently pulled the young healer to her feet and helped her limp to the rest of the Fairy Tail crowd, Wendy's knees shaking with exhaustion the entire way. From where he was still sitting at Lucy's side, the furrow in Makarov's brow loosened and his eyes softened with worry and slight regret. Lucy's breathing had become reduced to long, shaky breaths as her airways began to constrict within her throat and whimpers of pain escaped her as the poison made its way through her system. Laying his hand on Lucy's forehead, Makarov smoothed the hair from her brow in a fatherly gesture and released a heavy sigh. "Mavis, forgive me."

Closing his eyes in concentration, Makarov guided his magic to build up at the center point of his hand and, with one last shuddering breath, sent a magic pulse through Lucy's body.

"You've suffered enough. Rest now." From within her chest, Lucy's heart gave one last quivering beat before it relaxed and stopped.

* * *

Natsu felt like his heart had stopped right along with Lucy's. He couldn't have. Gramps wasn't a murderer. He knew Natsu's blood couldn't be used to turn people into werewolf-vampire hybrids. He _knew_! Master Makarov had been the one and only person he had told his secret to. He was an anomaly. They still didn't understand the extent of how his vampiric-side affected his werewolf genes, but one thing was certain: Natsu no longer possessed the ability to turn people, despite what the rest of his guild members thought.

And, despite knowing that, Makarov had _killed _her.

"**GRAMPS!**" He roared. The three men holding him down were startled at his yelling and Natsu felt them loosen their hold on his body. Roaring, Natsu threw them off and was clutching at the collar Master Makarov's white coat before Gray, Gajeel, or Laxus could hit the floor. Makarov barely blinked up at the pink-haired hybrid and Natsu felt his temper rise at his impassiveness.

"_You knew._ You knew that my blood couldn't turn her and you still…" Natsu rasped, his throat began to constrict and he pushed down on the sob that threatened to crush his chest with its vice-grip.

"...you still…" A sharp metal point dug into his back, conveniently placed where he knew his heart to be. He'd been stabbed in the back enough times to know.

"Let the master go, Natsu." Erza commanded. "I know a wound like this won't kill you, but I swear I'll make it painful. Let him go." The sword's tip dug in a little deeper, cutting through the material of his vest. "Now."

Natsu clenched his jaw and lowered Makarov back to the ground, grudgingly releasing the master's coat from his fisted hands.

"H-Hey! She moved!" Wakaba yelled. Excited murmuring began to raise in volume as a crowd gathered around the body in the snow.

Natsu's body went rigid. Master Makarov released a subtle sigh of relief, and Erza and the rest of their tiny formed group each tried to peer around the hovering bodies in surprised interest before making their way over — Natsu at the helm. He didn't care if he was being rough as he pushed people out of his way, stumbling to the floor next to Lucy when he finally broke through. Natsu gazed down at Lucy's inert form in subdued excitement and felt the heavy weight lift from his chest when one of her fingers twitched.

Lifting his head to the crowd he yelled, "Wendy! Wendy, she's alive!" A tiny form attempted to push through the large bodies in the circle, blue hair bobbing in the crowd.

"Please, let me through!"

Natsu laughed in relief, smiling wide. "You hear that, Lucy?" He turned to the blonde. "Wendy's going to fix you right up. So, hang in there for a little longer. Okay?"

Gently turning her head to the side, Natsu felt his elation grow to see that the bite had been reduced to two slightly raised scars; the putrid smell and dark veins that had been crawling beneath her skin had withdrawn.

Dark crimson traveled down her chin — the droplet stopping at the hollow of her throat. Natsu followed the red drop's path with his eyes all the way back to Lucy's face, where the trail seeped from the corner of her mouth. That wasn't his blood. Frowning, Natsu attempted to rub the blood away with his thumb and winced when he smeared it across her cheek into a bloody half-smile.

"...Lucy?" He breathed.

Lucy's eyes flung open and she released an abnormal hiss as she tackled Natsu, wrapping her hands around his neck. Natsu let out a surprised yell as they wrestled in the snow. From around them, panicked screams rang out as some moved to help the pink-haired hybrid while others tried moving as far away as possible.

When they came to a rolling halt - Natsu on his back - Lucy hissed in his face, fangs poking out from where they had forcefully burst from her gums. Her once warm and inviting eyes were now a soulless black, a daunting ring of gold replacing her brown irises. Natsu wrapped one arm on top of her forearms and pushed down on her arms in an attempt to keep her hands from choking him. The forearm of his other appendage pushed futility against the hollow of her throat as she hissed and snarled in his face, saliva and blood dripping down and hitting Natsu's cheek.

"L-Lucy… please, stop. This isn't… you! He grunted. This wasn't possible. She shouldn't have turned. As much as he loathed to admit, Lucy should have been dead. She couldn't have…

A rough piece of cloth swung from over Lucy's head and was tugged back, hooking into the edges of her mouth. His throat was released from her grip as Lucy reached up to rip at the gag pulling her back like makeshift reins. The person, who Natsu identified as Erza, flung her body back, pulling Lucy's body off his own. The crazed blonde struggled on top of the red-head and others rushed to hold down her flailing appendages when Lucy wildly threw her hands back to scratch at Erza's face with black, elongated nails.

Natsu was too shocked to move and he stared at the scene unfolding in front of him numbly. "Don't let her drink any of your blood!" Master Makarov yelled. The sound echoed in Natsu's ear and barely registered within his mind.

He hadn't saved her. Lucy was alive, yes, but Natsu hadn't saved her. Bodies tackled the blonde, four people holding down her legs to tie them together as Erza secured her gag. And, as Natsu watched his family retie Lucy's once chafed wrists together, he felt the truth click within his mind. He hadn't saved her. He had doomed her to a fate much worse.

* * *

"We turn her into the Council."

Makarov wearily pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "That isn't an option, Gray."

"Why the hell not?!" He yelled, slamming his hand down. The sound reverberated throughout the small room that was Makarov's office and rattled the walls. "You've seen how dangerous she can be! It took ten of us to take her down. Don't tell me you're actually considering letting her join the guild?!"

Erza immediately interjected. "That's not fair, Gray. You know the process of a turning is an unstable process. There are many factors involved that continue to elude us. She is not the first to go feral and will most definitely not be the last."

Gray roughly pushed back from the table they were all gathered at. His chair scraped against the floor and the joints creaked in protest. "This is stupid."

She raised a speculating eyebrow at Gray's angered form. "You seem very vehement against her joining, Gray. Care to share why?"

Gray quieted at having the spotlight directed on him. Golden hair and a gentle smile flashed in his mind before he pushed them down into the darkest recess of his mind. He wasn't about to be tricked into giving up his heart again. It'd already been butchered one too many times and he wouldn't allow _her _a chance to break it once more. Instead, he said, "I just don't trust her. She already has Natsu at her beck-and-call. Are you guys saying you're equally weak-minded?"

Protests rang throughout the room at his comment. Gajeel seemed ready to leap across the table to throttle Gray's throat if not for the petite blue-haired woman pulling on his arm. The large vampire opted to instead yell obscenities back at the black werewolf. Others rose from their spots at the table, Erza soon joining to quiet the growing hostilities.

"ENOUGH!" Silence swept across the room, everyone's attention directing themselves towards the head of the table. "Take. Your. Seats." Makarov seethed. One-by-one, the members of the room returned to their chairs until only Gray was left standing, staring down the master. "**Now**, **Gray.**" Magic flared from Makarov's body and Gray slowly lowered himself to his chair, effectively intimidated by the master's magical prowess.

Master Makarov released a slow breath and the pressure bearing down on the room lifted. "The Council will not hear of this incident." He said, pointedly looking into Gray's eyes until the werewolf dropped eye contact. Satisfied, Makarov nodded across the table at the blue-haired witch. "Levy."

The tiny witch nervously rose to her feet. Waving her hand in the air, a thin file materialized, levitating above the table. Levy plucked it from the air and flipped it open. "Lucy Heartfilia. Age: 26. Graduated from Hargeon University with high honors before moving shortly to Magnolia. Occupation: Magnolia's Head Veterinarian. No recorded family or distant relatives. No crime records. She's basically a blank slate; no outside connections." Levy reported, frowning. "Looks like we won't have to be doing any clean-up. As far as we know, Jackal and Mard Geer eradicated the entire town. No reports of any survivors."

Makarov and a few others in the room fell into a solemn silence at the thought that no one would miss the blonde's disappearance. Tragedies in Magnolia's surrounding forest areas weren't uncommon, but there was always _someone_ to mourn the dead. Lucy didn't even have a family to return to, much less a home.

"Then it's decided." Makarov finally said. "Lucy will be staying here at Fairy Tail until a proper solution arises. Treat her as you would any other Fairy Tail member."

Everyone nodded and moved to leave when Gray finally spoke up once more. "How bout' Natsu?"

"As far as the Council is concerned Natsu is-"

"I could care less what the Council thinks" Gray interrupted. "What he said before — about not being able to turn her. What did he mean? He's a hybrid, why shouldn't he be able to?"

Makarov looked Gray straight in the eyes when he answered him. "What Natsu decides to unveil about himself is his decision to make. You would do well to respect your pack brother's privacy, Gray."

Gray looked like he got slapped in the face before his expression evened out into restrained agitation. "Great. Everyone's keeping damn secrets now." He left, slamming the door behind him with a resonating bang that rattled the walls.

"Stupid hypocrite." Gajeel grumbled. He grunted when Levy jabbed her elbow into his side, glaring up at him for his unnecessary commentary.

"He's not the only one." Erza sighed, eyeing the head of the table. "What's going on, Master? Fairy Tail and the Magic Council are already aware that Natsu was turned into a hybrid when under Zeref's captivity. Please, Master Makarov. If Natsu's in trouble, he shouldn't shoulder his problems alone; that isn't the Fairy Tail way."

If only it was that simple, Makarov thought. "I'm sorry, but for Natsu's safety — and your own — I ask that you speak no more on the subject." The finality in his tone deflated Erza's desire for answers and she stood from her seat and left the room after Gray. The rest of the room's residents slowly began to trickle out.

"Mira." The barmaid halted at Makarov's calling and lingered as everyone else left. "Could you please check on Ms. Heartfilia?"

* * *

It felt like she was being torn in two. Something… something wild — uncontrollable — wanted to be let out. It clawed at her ribcage and struggled to come up her throat in a guttural roar. Instead, a pained cry wrenched itself from Lucy's throat and she thrashed against the restraints pinning her to the bed. She wanted to cry for somebody — _anybody_ — to help her, but the pain silenced any audible words she could attempt to form.

Even in her pain-induced state, the sound of a frantic heartbeat and pounding feet reached her ears. Hands rattled the handrails of what she assumed to be the medical bed she lies in and calls worriedly, "Ms. Porlyusica! Come quick!"

The voice is young and Lucy doesn't feel courageous enough to brave the glaring lights overhead with what she can tell are overly sensitive eyes. The girl's hands attempt to push down on Lucy's shoulders as she struggles harder against the medical restraints. A calm, but still perturbed, heartbeat joins the first and Lucy's heart spikes in fear when it seems to edge closer towards her. As if sensing her fear, the… thing inside her slips into a more panicked frenzy and Lucy feels her control slip through her fingers.

Muscles shift in ways they were never designed to and Lucy feels her feet and arms break free with a loud 'snap' of leather and metal. A soft hand rests itself on Lucy's shoulder and her unrestrained hand flails out to clutch at the sides of her head. She hears the sound of skin slapping against skin and the pained yelp of the young girl sends a sliver of guilt through Lucy's heart, but is quickly stamped out.

An older voice calls out something in a language Lucy does not recognize and a soft chill like a cooling balm washes over her, but the beast is close to the freedom it desires and will not be denied. The pain worsens and Lucy screams louder as she pulls at the strands of her hair and rolls across the bed and to the floor, hunching over. The medical gown she's been put in crinkles and tears as what feels like her entire spinal cord flexes and rearranges itself, something bursting from the small of her back in an excruciating arc. The bones in her arms and legs collapse on themselves and Lucy's forced to release her hair when the bones in her fingers feel like their simultaneously breaking and shrinking into her palms. She lays her hands flat out in front of her and watches in horror as the digits mutilate and sprout claws over her nails. Her scream this time is one of horror, but that soon dies out into a choked gasp as her throat closes up and elongates and the bones in her face push out into a shape no longer suited for human dialect.

By now her gown has been ripped to shreds and what she knows to be a new blanket of fur covers her nudity. She takes a moment and simply remains in her hunched position, breathing in deep, ragged breaths. Then the voices start.

"Wendy—!"

"What was he thinking—?"

'_What was up with Natsu—?'_

"-him be, Juvia."

'_Stupid, Flame-brain!'_

Voices, too many voices. She whimpered and pawed at her ears, gritting her too-sharp teeth at the ensuing headache. It was too much all at once. People's voices echoed in her ears and other...foreign sounds echoed in her mind. She just wanted it all to stop! She wanted freedom!

Answering her call, the entity Lucy had been warring with took over and she rose on unfamiliar legs. While unconventional, it felt so natural standing on four legs rather than two, and Lucy finally got her first glimpse of the world around her, wincing at the light with a shake of her head. Looking around, the old lady she heard from before was squatting over a young-blue haired girl, fussing over the blood dripping from her cheek. Whining in dismay, her ears and tail drooped and she momentarily ignored the voices plaguing her mind in favor of inching slowly closer towards the pair, not necessarily knowing what she could do to help but wanting to nonetheless.

'_I'm sorry.'_ They didn't hear her silent apology, but many of the voices within her mind paused in unrestrained curiosity at the new mind among them.

The flaps at the end of the room were thrown open in a flourish and a white-haired women ran in. "Wendy! Porlyusica!" The yell startled her and before anyone could say anything she was bolting out of the tent into the unknown.

She squinted at the sunlight that momentarily blinded her and many individuals that caught her appearance paused to stare and walk closer, closing in on her.

Safe. Need somewhere safe. Hide.

Swiveling her head around in a panic, she instinctively hunched and bore her teeth in a warning to those who came too close.

"Hey—" A hand reached out for her head and she lunged, snapping at his hand, but only caught air. Surprised screams rang and she whimpered once more at the volume. She just wanted somewhere safe to hide.

"Romeo!" The boy's father, she assumed, pulled him away with a look of anger.

The white-haired woman came back out and Lucy bolted. "Someone get Natsu!"

Lucy ran. Twisting around people's legs and jumping away from other wandering wolves, all sorts of scents bombarded her nose. But nothing smelled safe! Nowhere to hide. And then she caught it. A smell. A safe smell. Somewhere she could hide, hide away from this unfamiliar world. She followed it, ignoring surprised gasps and yells directed after her. Weaving her way around tents and yurts to try and lose the people chasing after her.

Her nose led her to a red yurt, flames decorating the sides in a beautiful pattern. The dominant smell of its owner barely fazed her. It was safe. Lunging across the walkway and through the opening. The smell of campfire smoke greeted her and the entity sharing her mind breathed a sigh of relief. She would be safe her. Her safe haven.

A light blue cat hissed at her from where it was perched upon a wooden drawer. She reared back at the threat. A part of her mind urged her to attack and eat the tiny being, but voices sounded from outside her safe haven and frightened her, eradicating thoughts of indulging on the cat's bones. They were going to take her away!

She was torn. She wanted to stand and fight! Prove she was strong enough to defend what she had deemed to be her new sanctuary. A larger part of her was too scared to face the enemy and she dove for the furs in the middle of the floor, hiding herself within their warm embrace. She was surrounded by the safe smell now. It was a familiar smell. A smell that poked at the edges of her mind but continued to elude her. She would be safe here. The cat continued to hiss from his perch.

An argument erupted from outside the yurt and she curled herself into a tighter ball beneath the furs, taking in a deep breath of the firewood scent when the sound of someone encroaching her sanctuary broke her reverie. Slow steps made their way across the floor to her huddle of blankets and a voice nervously called, "...Lucy?"

Her ears pricked at the name. Lucy. That was her… wasn't it? She couldn't remember. The stranger smelled safe, much like the scent she surrounded herself with now, and images of a dark wolf flashed in her mind. Excited at having found a familiar companion, she poked her head out from under her nest of furs and panted happily only to frown in confusion at the sight before her. The large, dark-furred wolf of her thoughts was nowhere to be found; instead, a pink-haired man stood before her, hands out in a placating gesture.

Confusion. She was so confused. The human— no, he wasn't human. She didn't know what he was. Regardless, he _smelled _safe, but his form did not match the one she had expected and unfamiliarity meant danger. Two sides of her mind quarreled and she whimpered when she couldn't decide whether to pant in happiness or growl in anger.

His face morphed into one of deep regret and he looked like he was tempting the idea of throwing-up. "I… I'm so sorry." He rasped, staggering forward.

She growled at his closing proximity, but he continued forward, stumbling at the last remaining feet to throw his arms around her. She attacked.

* * *

The bite didn't hurt as much as he wanted to admit, and Natsu let Lucy clench her teeth harder around his wrist, drawing more blood. Natsu didn't allow himself the luxury of struggling to break her hold. He already knew Lucy would be too nice to bother inflicting him with pain for his actions. If anything, she'd probably beat herself up over doing this much to him in her confused state. The thought made him wince guiltily.

Instead, he wrapped his right arm around her furred body in a one-armed hug, burying his face into her furred neck. "I'm so sorry." He sobbed. Reaching up, he patted the top of her head between her ears in constant, soothing strokes.

Lucy's ears drooped and the angry haze lifted from her eyes as she released his wrist, whimpering sadly. In an attempt to lament for her actions, Lucy licked at the puncture marks in his wrist, peering up at him with sad, questioning eyes. Natsu released a choked laugh and wiped at the corners of his eyes.

"It's fine. Doesn't even hurt. See?" He lifted his arm for her to see the wounds closing up on their own already. "I'm not that easy to kill."

She peered back at him with skeptical eyes and Natsu found himself missing her natural brown irises. While this was Lucy, this was the wolf taking over. Natsu had seen it enough times to know she wasn't exactly in control of her thoughts or actions at the moment and he quickly sobered.

Rubbing the top of her head, he scratched her once more behind the ears (to Lucy's delight if the way she practically purred was any indication) before lowering his hand to rest lightly on her neck. No resistance. "You've had a long day. Rest now, okay, Lucy? I'll be right here when you wake up. It's my turn to take care of you." He smiled assuredly.

She tilted her golden head to the side in confusion, not understanding his words, before he pinched down hard on a bundle of nerves at her neck. The golden irises boring into his own onyx ones disappeared behind closed lids and the wolf slumped against his chest, unconscious. Natsu pulled one of the fur bed linens closer to himself and swaddled the wolf in his arms with it as she slowly morphed back into her human form.

Releasing a deep sigh, Natsu gently hooked a golden lock behind Lucy's ear from where it had been dangling in front of her face. Not liking that his keeper was ignoring him, Happy hopped down from his perch of safety and inched closer to the pair cautiously, sniffing at the blonde.

"She's not going to eat you, Happy." Natsu jokes. Not appreciating his humor, the cat sniffed and made his way to resume his nap in the hammock, having had enough excitement for the day.

"You never know. She could." Heavy, booted feet thumped across the wooden flooring of the yurt and Natsu released a low growl, pulling the blonde in his arms into a tighter embrace.

Of everyone in the guild, Gray should have known better than to trespass on another werewolf's territory. Especially when they weren't welcomed. "She's not a threat." Natsu shot back.

Gray stopped right behind him. "That's not really for you to decide, Natsu."

"Oh, and I suppose it's your decision?"

"She hurt Wendy!" Gray pointed accusingly.

"Lucy wasn't in her right mind. It was her first transformation. She was just defending herself." Natsu growled, making a mental note to check on Wendy later.

"You don't know what she's done. What she and her mother..." Gray paused.

"Her mother?" Natsu asked in confusion, urging the other werewolf to continue. He wasn't awarded an answer. Gray huffed and stomped out of Natsu's yurt without another word, leaving Natsu with more questions and fewer answers.

Gazing down at the unconscious blonde, Natsu immediately brushed off Gray's warning. He had already committed to watching over Lucy. No matter what anyone else said, she was his responsibility now. He couldn't change what had occurred in the past. But she was here now: alive, and he would be damned sure she stayed that way. He'd protect her from anything that came their way. Even if she needed it from his own pack-brother.


	8. Act II, Ch I

**First off, I'm really sorry this has taken me so long to do. I was going over the past chapters and found some things that tangled messily with the original plot I had set for this story. So, I had to go back and redo some of my main plot points so the story would make sense. Don't know when the next chapter will be out but I'll get to it soon! Thank you to everyone that's reviewed, faved, and followed so far! We've hit past 100 followers and 60 favs! I honestly didn't think this story would make it that far so thank you to all of you for your support! **

* * *

_The wind bites at his fur and snow seeps into his bones and he feels too tired to run anymore. When he thinks back, that's all he's been doing — running— and now it has caught up to him and leaves him slumped in a cold blanket of never-ending white. The burning gash across his brow is numbed by the icy specks that begin to consume his form, but the red keeps him grounded to the world of the living and he takes a moment to admire the beauty of the crimson liquid as it leaks down his face and bleeds into the ground. His eyes focus and follow the stream of color as it bleeds into the white nothingness surrounding him and he truly believes that, if this is how he was going to die — starved, tired, and cold — at the very least, he'll be leaving behind something to fill this lonely, desolate canvas of white. He hated the color red, but he hated white more._

_Something tickles his nose. _

_The new smell isn't one of bitter copper or cold wind. It possesses soft hands and a voice with childlike innocence and he becomes a mere puppet to its insistent pulls. The smell is a girl and it hurts when she tries to lift him because she is too tiny, dragging his stubby legs across the ground. He doesn't get mad, red trailing after them and staining her hands. He'd apologize later for blemishing her hands and clothes. Her body was soft and warm and he found he preferred this painful position rather than being swallowed by the white's icy embrace._

_She drags him further and further and he's too lethargic to understand just how far they've traveled. The cold clutches of wind release him from their grasp and he and the sweet-smelling girl are bathed in warmth and the smell of fresh pine and _magic_. Another smell. This one is much older but equally as sweet. New hands brush through the short fur of his head and massage delicately at his temples, gently prodding at the origin point of that disgusting red. A warm smile._

"_Who's this, Lucy?"_

* * *

Lucy's eyelids tugged at the crust sealing her eyes shut, wincing when they were finally wrenched painfully open. Rubbing away the sleep from her eyes, the blonde cast her gaze around the medical tent. Adjacent beds with pristine white sheets lined the walls and were all empty save for her own while warm light seeped through the thin fabric that acted as walls. Peering down, Lucy found herself in a large, plain T-shirt and a pair of sweatpants.

Hushed voices reached her ears from the back of the sickbay — breaking her train of thought — and Lucy nervously made her way over, gripping the ends of each bed railing for support.

"Ex-excuse me?" She called out. The voices immediately quieted and the sound of shuffling rose. The curtain to the back opened to reveal a familiar face.

"Dr. Heartfilia," Levy McGarden smiled. "How are you feeling?"

Lucy stared in surprise before she found her words. "Confused." She licked her lips nervously, tongue heavy. "A little disoriented. Where am I?" Bringing a hand up to clutch at her head, her grip began to slip from the footboard, body swaying.

"Oops." The shorter blue-haired woman ducked under the blonde's arm to steady her, guiding Lucy to the nearest bed. "Yeah, the first transformation tends to do that. Anything from headaches to nausea to broken bones…" Levy eased Lucy onto a mattress, taking a seat on the cot across from her. "Well, I actually wouldn't know since I'm a witch and not a..." Levy glanced up to gauge Lucy's reaction. "...werewolf."

She couldn't help it; a laugh erupted from Lucy's mouth before she could stop it. "Werewolf?" she chortled.

Levy ticked off on her fingers, "Werewolf, Rougarou, Lycan, shape-shifter, the list goes on really." She tapped her chin. "I guess you could add hybrids to that list, as well."

Lucy stopped to stare at the smaller woman across from her, taking in the seriousness in her eyes despite the playfulness in her facial expression. "You're...serious?"

Levy smiled sympathetically and, with a wave of her hand, the light seeping through the tent seemed to bend and shift, creating a spiraling tornado of golden light and heat within Levy's palm. "Unfortunately." Fisting her hand closed, the tornado of light extinguished.

When she continued to gape at Levy in awed bewilderment, Levy stood to her feet. "Take a walk with me?"

Not seeing any other immediate alternative, Lucy reluctantly obliged and edged carefully towards the medical bay's entrance after the shorter woman. Flashing her an encouraging smile, Levy pulled back the curtained entrance.

The camp that greeted Lucy's eyes was beyond what she had thought to expect. Besides the grandeur of the decorative tents lining the immediate area, snow-capped trees spiraled into the sky far above their heads all around what appeared to be the camp's borders, creating a natural cover to anything beyond. Children scrambled through the snow alongside wolves and wolf pups and bustling activity arose from what she could see as the entrance of a market place. But, Lucy was more enraptured by what felt like something magical, humming in the air. Closing her eyes, she took in a deep breath as she let the feeling wash over her, loosening her nerves.

Smiling at the look on the blonde's face, Levy said, "Come on. I'll give you the grand tour later. They're waiting for us."

Lucy turned on the blue-haired witch with a look of confusion. "They?"

* * *

"This isn't a conservation center, is it?" Lucy questioned her guide as they made their way across the expansive camp.

Levy sheepishly smiled back. "Not really. Fairy Tail was originally founded with the hope to be a sanctuary for all sorts of supernatural beings. The most common being vampires, witches, and werewolves — as they are most commonly referred to as." She side-stepped an incoming passerby precariously balancing large boxes in his arms. With a wave of her hand, the unbalanced man was lifted off his feet by an invisible force before a group of giggling children could run into him. He was then reset upon his feet after the danger had passed, looking to-and-fro for his savior. Lucy stared with large eyes at the spectacle before hurrying to catch up as the small witch took a turn onto what appeared to be the main road leading up to the largest tent in the camp.

With a flourish, Levy turned around and threw her arms out in showing. "Welcome to the Fairy Tail guild hall." Lucy smiled in thanks before following the smaller girl into the hall, and immediately being forced to duck before a flying plate could hit her in the head. The guild was close to mayhem. People ducking behind upturned tables and benches, wooden chairs, Tupperware, and even _people _were being thrown right and left across the hall. Brawlers punching and kicking other members, all while smiling excitedly and laughing whole-heartedly. Lucy was too shocked to feel that Levy didn't relinquish her hold on Lucy's arm until they had expertly guided through the all-out brawl to the back where an office door was open. Pulling Lucy in, Levy closed the door behind them, alerting the other occupants of the room to their presence.

"Sorry about that," Levy said.

"Is it… always like that?" Lucy asked exasperatedly.

Levy tapped her chin in thought before smiling perkily. "Yep! Although, Wednesdays are usually the worst."

Lucy was almost afraid to ask. "What's Wednesday?"

The smaller woman leaned in with a conspiratorial whisper, "Strawberry cake is on the dessert menu."

Lucy leaned back with a puzzled expression and was about to question the tiny witch further when the sound of a throat clearing interrupted her. "I'm glad to see you finally awake, Ms. Heartfilia. We have much we need to discuss."

The voice came from a tiny old man standing atop a desk littered with stacks of papers and trinkets. Lucy shifted her attention to said man, taking note of the individual standing slightly off to the side, sporting familiar salmon hair and a white-scaled scarf. Her nose tingled with familiarity for the briefest of moments.

"I assume Levy has filled you in on some of the details of our… tiny community?" the old man continued.

"Yes, uh… it's still a lot to wrap my head around. I didn't think she was serious about it all being… real…" She hesitantly gauged the other occupants' expressions, not wanting to insult supernatural beings that could and most definitely would possess the ability to kill her. A fairly familiar young girl with deep blue hair gave her an encouraging smile and Lucy smiled shakily in return.

"Understandable. But, I assure you, we are very real. Although, we prefer to keep that hidden knowledge from the outside." he paused. "Not as many humans are as kind-hearted about our existence as we would like." A dark-haired man in the corner scoffed and Lucy pursed her lips nervously.

She took a second to organize her thoughts before attempting to respond. "If this is one of those 'talk and you die' situations then I… I live in a remote forest town. We rarely — if ever — get any visitors from out of town and communication with the rest of the world is fairly silent… You haven't known me longer than a minute, but you can trust I won't tell a soul."

The same dark-haired man from before grumbled, "More like she doesn't have anyone left to tell."

The pink-haired man with the white scarf snarled, "Shut up, Gray." _Natsu,_ Lucy's mind helpfully informed her in remembrance.

Lucy's nose twitched and she rubbed at it self-consciously, perking a confused brow at _Gray's_ comment. The old man struck his desk with a wooden staff — that seemed to have appeared from thin air — with a loud thud, silencing the two.

Once quiet, he peered sympathetically up at Lucy. "What exactly do you remember from before you arrived here, Ms. Heartfilia?"

"Uh...that man...he brought a patient in with him...Jackal? It was dark and then...I was falling." She swallowed in an attempt to clear her throat. "There was water...and nothing."

Everyone around the room continued watching her with pity in their eyes and it was beginning to frustrate her. "Look, I just want to go home and forget this ever happened. I'll keep your secret. I promise, and, as childish as this may seem, I never break my promises," she said, conviction sparking in her eyes.

"It is not your integrity that concerns me, Ms. Heartfilia; but, for your safety, I ask that you remain here at Fairy Tail for the time being."

Lucy's patience was just about thinned to dust. "I'm sorry, but who did you say you were?"

The red-haired woman took a menacing step towards her, and while the realistic part of her mind begged her to kneel and apologize, the majority forced her feet to remain where they were, straightening her spine in defiance.

The old man held out his wooden staff in front of the raging redhead, stopping her from possibly breaking Lucy's bones in thirty-six different ways. "It's okay, Erza. Her frustration is justified." He lowered his staff and smiled at Lucy. "I am Makarov, guild master of Fairy Tail. Alongside me are Erza, Gray, Gajeel, and Wendy," pointing out each individual he called out. "You've already met Levy and Natsu," nodding to the smiling witch and grinning man. "They'll be responsible for helping you settle in. Mirajane has already set up a yurt for you to stay in and-"

"Wait! Wait, wait, wait." She waved her hands frantically in front of herself. "I am _not _staying here. I have patients that I need to get back to. While your hospitality is more than appreciated, and I appreciate you saving me from drowning — this isn't my home. Magnolia is."

Makarov released a deep sigh. "I am sorry, Ms. Heartfilia, but I feel that it would be in your best interest to not leave. At least not yet." He added quickly at her fallen expression.

"Why?"

"You've been turned." She lifted her gaze with a confused frown. "You've become a mixed species. The first to ever appear within the supernatural communities. A human-witch-vampire-werewolf hybrid."

The world was spinning faster than Lucy could process and she stumbled backward, thankfully landing in a chair Natsu pulled up for her. She didn't even see him move from the other side of the room. "I-I'm a vampire-werewolf hybrid?" She stammered, clenching her eyes closed in a futile attempt to ward off an oncoming headache. "...I'm a witch?" She whispered hoarsely.

"You radiate traces of magical energy, however faint, and Levy's testimony upon your first meeting confirms our speculations." Makarov gently answered.

Lucy wasn't the only surprised by that comment, but for different reasons. "You told him?!" Natsu suddenly yelled. Startled, Lucy released a sneeze at the potent smell that suddenly invaded her senses, the scent of raging firewood smoke mysteriously filling the air with no burning wood in sight.

"The situation was out of my hands the moment she turned, Natsu." Levy smoothly retaliated to Lucy's further confusion as she futilely attempted to rub the smell from her nose.

"You promised, Levy! You promised you wouldn't say anything about her!" Natsu gnashed his teeth in anger.

A long dark-haired man with multiple piercings stepped up to stand in front of the short witch. "Back off, Salamander, before I make you," he growled.

"Gajeel." Levy scolded, tugging at the tall man's sleeve firmly.

"So what if Levy spilled?" Gray yawned. The two supernatural men swerved to glare at the new speaker. "Not like it matters now. She's already one of us; can't change anything about that now," he drawled, "Stop making such a big deal out of it and let's get on with our lives."

"Hey," Lucy suddenly spoke up, catching the attention of everyone in the room. "I can barely wrap my head around the fact that the supernatural _exists_, and, despite what you may think, I'm not… one of you. I can barely remember what happened before I got here. I'm not a werewolf, a vampire, or a witch! I'm _human_. Just….human. I'm thankful for you saving me, I truly am, but I'm going home." She hurried out of the room with a sense of urgency before anyone could stop her, scared of the potential consequences to her actions.

"Well, that went well." Gray shrugged at the irritated glances cast his way.

Natsu didn't bother with starting a fight, mind focused on more important matters. "Asshole," he grumbled under his breath before heading out after Lucy.

"Honestly, Gray." Makarov sighed tiredly. Gray just shrugged once more.

"Master?" Levy spoke up from behind the desk, phone in hand. "There's a call for you. It's the Council."

* * *

"Lucy!" Natsu ran out of the hall, peering over heads and around shoulders as he tried to keep the blonde within his sight.

While he appreciated Makarov keeping the more detailed aspects of the confrontation with Tartaros from Lucy, her reaction to the reveal had left him fairly discouraged. He wanted her to _like_ Fairy Tail. His home. They were by no means, close friends. _Yet, _he reminded himself. But Natsu wanted them to be. His wolf already considered her part of his internal pack and Natsu, himself, felt personally responsible for causing her current dilemma.

He'd be sure to care for her. Help her adapt to her new abilities, make her feel at home — he'd be her new home. Natsu's wolf yipped happily at that idea.

With that in mind, Natsu smiled and resumed his efforts to catch up with the fast-disappearing blonde. Already, Lucy had made it past the outskirts of the civilian homes and markets and was making her way through the underbrush and pack border.

"LUCY!" Natsu called out once more. He let out a relieved sigh when she faltered and turned to see who had been following her only to release a frustrated groan when she ignored him and continued on her way, this time at a fast run.

"Lucy, stop!" He raced after her, restraining the urge to follow on all fours rather than two. Natsu wasn't ready for her to know about him. He'd let her get to know the man, first. Not the wolf.

Surprisingly, Natsu was finding it hard to keep pace with the woman, and he wasn't a slouch when it came to staying fit, even with the bonus of agility and speed his wolf granted him. He didn't think Lucy was even aware of how fast she was going, the forest flashing by them in a blend of white and browns.

She was _fast._

His wolf grinned at the idea of a chase and barked its approval. Natsu imagined clamping a hand down on the wolf's muzzle. The beast whined in agitation at having its fun spoiled but thankfully backed off for the time being.

They were pretty far from Fairy Tail's main camp by now and Natsu could sense the barrier coming up fast. He yelled once more, "Lucy! Listen to me! You have to stop!"

"Stop following me! Just leave me alone!" She finally responded. With a burst of speed, he didn't even know she possessed, the distance between them slowly increased as she tried to lose him.

"I'M TRYING TO HELP YOU! YOU'RE GONNA HIT-" Too late.

A sharp 'BANG' echoed in his ears and he winced in sympathy, slowing down his sprint to a slow jog. Exiting the coverage of trees, Natsu found the blonde sprawled on her back, dazed. The air in front of them rippling like the surface of a disturbed pond where she had no doubt rammed into it.

He approached her slowly till he was standing over her, brow furrowed in slight concern. "I'm impressed you didn't break your nose," Natsu finally settled on saying.

"Wh-what… was that?" Lucy winced. She rubbed at her forehead.

"Barrier," Natsu supplied. He walked up and tapped it in showing, the shield reacting in response and undulating under his light touch. "Only members with the guild stamp are allowed passage through." Brandishing the mark on his shoulder proudly, he pushed his arm through the divide with minimal effort, smiling at the thought of her awed response. "Of course not everyone at Fairy Tail has a mark, only the ones who take outside jobs and who are usually trained for combat. The rest stay inside the barrier for safety," he explained.

Lucy pushed herself up to her feet and walked up to the barrier showing no emotional response to his 'impressive' display. The limpness of her left arm had Natsu frowning.

"Hey, I think your arm might be-" Lucy threw herself at the barrier, punching and scratching at the surface with her free hand. Tears ran down her face in heavy streams and a desperate scream tore from her throat. It was a scream filled with anguish and fear that chilled Natsu right down to his core and washed through his veins with ice. This was not the composed and graceful woman he had come to know. The woman who would deal with irascible, old cats and console skittish dogs — all with an unearthly amount of patience — not just because it was her job, but because she cared. Who would wrestle with him in the snow and unconsciously cuddle him in her sleep. No, in front of him was a cornered animal that wanted nothing more than freedom he couldn't provide for her.

Slowly, Natsu wrapped his arms tightly around her waist from behind, mindful of her dislocated left shoulder. Even as she struggled and screamed and elbowed his head, Natsu still hung on.

"What do you want from me?!" Natsu caught from the midst of her screams. She was kicking at his shins now, doing everything she thought to dislodge him. He didn't think she realized, but Lucy's magic began to join in the attack as well, but, rather than the wash of warmth he had come to associate with her magic, cold tore at his insides and wrapped their constricting hands around his throat. His heart became too heavy, and if he hadn't been holding Lucy against his chest, he thought it might have fallen through his chest and to the floor. Darkness crept into his mind and brought back memories of pain and torture from years long forgotten. A part of himself wanted to curl into a ball and weep, but he held on strong. Lucy was his anchor to reality. Yet she was also the weight attempting to drag him under. Oh, the irony.

"Nothing," he finally whispered, cheek pressed against her head. Lucy stopped struggling against him and became limp in his arms, forehead resting against the wall keeping her from escaping. The dark tendrils of her magic began to recede. Natsu would have preferred their cold embrace than the emptiness that now filled his heart.

"Then, _why_?!" she cried, sobs shaking through her hunched frame.

"Because you're one of us," Natsu said without thinking. Lucy cried harder at his words and shook her head in denial.

"You're wrong. I'm not. I'm human. Human..." She swallowed thickly. "I just want to go home."

_This can be your home. _Natsu wanted to say, but kept his thoughts silent, not wanting to upset Lucy any more than she already was.

"How 'bout we go see the old hag about fixing up your shoulder?" He asked instead. Lucy didn't respond to his suggestion and he took it as silent confirmation. Keeping one arm lightly wrapped around her right hand, he pulled her away from her spot against the shield — being patient when she didn't immediately follow his light tugs at her arm.

The trek back to camp was silent and Natsu pretended to be unaware of the desperate glances Lucy would throw over her shoulder every other step they made away from the border.


	9. Act II, Ch II

**Hey everyone! Finally got to update Our World! I actually wanted to get some constructive criticism from you guys: the readers. The reason why I think I struggle with updating this (besides time management) is that I'm really overly critical of my writing and I think one of my major flaws is the flow of my writing. The transition between paragraphs and sentences most of the time seems really choppy to me; so, if any of you wouldn't mind putting in a little time to help me out, I'd really like to know any tips you guys have on how I can improve! Becoming a better writer allows me to provide you all with better storytelling, so anything you all think I can improve on is welcome! Again, I'm looking for constructive criticism, so please no bashing.**

**Thank you to reviewers: Ushindeshi, Guest, Forbidden-Hanyou, CathJorda, Guest, its-actually-kate, TheSevenFairyDeadlyTailSins, artistofthemind, Marie086, and Dark Shining Light!**

**All of your reviews truly make my day and bring a smile to my face. Without further ado, here's the next chapter! Enjoy!**

* * *

"Three, two —"

_CRACK._

The sudden blossom of pain forced a short yelp from Lucy's throat. The foreign feeling of her body easing the tension from her shoulder on its own intrigued her, but the cooling balm sensation it provided had her sighing in relief.

From his position at her side, Natsu delicately released his grip on her arm. "Hurts less when you don't expect it," he said apologetically.

Lucy didn't respond, much to his disappointment; rather, her attention was purposely focused on the young healer in front of her.

"Do you feel any pain?" Wendy asked as she moved Lucy's arm in different directions experimentally. Her patient shook her head. "Good. Your healing factor seems to be in working condition. I don't think you'll be needing a sling. Miss Porlyusica?"

The old healer nodded in agreement. "Just don't go running into the border anymore, stupid girl. We won't have time to worry about your pesky bruises when real lives are at risk," she sniffed.

"Thank you," Lucy whispered. Porlyusica glared one last time before leaving. Natsu petulantly stuck his tongue out after the older woman. Wendy giggled at his childish antics and the young man ruffled her hair playfully in response.

Leaning his arm against the shorter girl's head, Natsu acknowledged the blonde, "Don't worry about Porlyusica. She's like that with everyone. Except this one right here." He wrapped his arm around Wendy's neck and gave her a noogie with his other hand, missing the amused look on Lucy's face as Wendy squealed and tried furtively to escape his hold.

"Anyway, you know where Lucy's stayin', Wendy?" Natsu finally released the small girl and folded his arms behind his head.

"Mirajane said your accommodations will be in one of the available yurts on Strawberry Street," Wendy said to Lucy, wanting to include the blonde in the conversation.

Natsu nodded in understanding before pivoting on his heel to leave the med-bay. "Sounds good. Could you show her where it is Wends? I got a small errand to run outside," referring to beyond the campgrounds.

Wendy chirped excitedly in response and Natsu made one step towards the exit before a slight tug on his vest halted him. Turning, he found Lucy clutching the fabric of his clothes in her hand, an imploring look shining in her brown orbs.

She had reached out without thinking. The only thing truly going through her mind being that Natsu was leaving her. She was surrounded by unfamiliar people. Unfamiliarity brought confusion and, by default, danger. While she hadn't known him long, Natsu was familiar. And he was _leaving._ Lucy hated to admit that he made her feel safe and secure — he, and his scent of firewood smoke — but she hated being left alone in an unknown place even more.

'_Don't leave', _her mind unconsciously telegraphed.

Understanding dawned in his onyx eyes and Natsu turned to kneel in front of her, placing a reassuring hand atop her head. "Don't worry," he assured, "You can trust Wendy."

'_I'll be back,'_ his voice seemed to echo in her mind, and Lucy was placated by what she believed to be her own thought's reassurance. She nodded almost imperceptibly and Natsu flashed her one last wide grin before he stood to his full height and left without another word.

* * *

" —and across the canal is where we have our vegetable and strawberry field gardens, hence why the street being named Strawberry Street." Wendy pointed across the canal from where they were walking along the cobblestone road. The small girl leaned in close, cupping her hand against her face like she was sharing an important secret. "It was Erza who requested that a whole field be dedicated to planting strawberries. She also contributed to the naming of this street, too."

The blonde by her side gave no indication of having heard her. Instead, she continued walking at a steady pace, head bowed, as if in a daze. Wendy's smile slowly disappeared and she copied Lucy's example of walking in silence.

"I get it, you know," Wendy finally said, "wanting to leave. Sometimes it can feel like you're trapped in a cage; like you're a prisoner… but Fairy Tail isn't like that!" Her exclamation startled Lucy from her thoughts and, since they started their trek, she finally looked down to regard the young girl.

"I'm sorry," Wendy apologized, cheeks reddening at the stray looks cast her way. "It's just… Natsu felt the same way once… about leaving."

"He said that the guild mark lets you leave," Lucy said. Wendy's eyes lit up with excitement and she nodded her head enthusiastically, thrilled the blonde was finally speaking to her about _something_.

"Yes! Many of Fairy Tail's residents aren't part of the guild and make a living through the many establishments built within the camp, like the market. However, guild members take jobs organized by the Council — which are, most of the time, conducted within human civilizations. A guild mark establishes a person as part of a guild and lets them come and go across the border," she concluded, flashing her own blue guild mark on her shoulder.

Lucy nodded in understanding before Wendy stopped them in front of one of the yurts along the road. "Here we are!"

The outside was much like its adjacent counterparts with white walls and a small porch and patio stairs leading up to the entrance. Inside was much more impressive. A tiny kitchenette was situated in the immediate left-hand corner, a small furnished sitting area located across from it to the right. Further in was a writing desk and chair, a lofted bed with quilts above it. A bathtub-shower and a small sink with a sliding wooden wall for privacy in the last corner. The middle of the floor was covered with a pristine-white furred rug and hanging from the ceiling beneath the skylight was a hanging grid entwined with vined plants and fairy lights.

"Myself, Mira, and a few others helped decorate it for you while you were asleep. We thought you might like a more modern look," Wendy said with glee as she watched Lucy walk around the small home in awe. "We also picked out some clothes you might like, but we can go and exchange some of them for new ones down at the market, later, if you want." She bounced over to the wardrobe closet and pulled open the cabinet doors and drawers to reveal an array of colors and fabrics.

For the first time since Wendy had met her, Lucy cast her a dazzling smile. A real smile. "Thank you, Wendy, truly," she said.

"Of course." The teen smiled. "Would you like to go down to the guild hall? We can grab a bite to eat. And I can tell you more about how you can get a guild mark!" She added, knowing the topic would interest the blonde.

Lucy perused her new quarters one last time before nodding. "Sure."

"Great!" Wendy clapped her hands and made for the exit before stopping. "One last thing, Lucy. I didn't tell you about Natsu to make you feel guilty. I told you to let you know that there are people who understand what you're going through and are willing to help, myself included. So, please, don't push Natsu away. He tends to think with his heart more than his head and his heart has told him that you're worth looking out for. Just… give him a chance, okay? He might just surprise you." Wendy smiled one last time at the blonde before opening the flap and leaving. It took Lucy a second to contemplate Wendy's words and just how mature the young teenager was before following after her.

* * *

"Yes...I understand. Thank you….goodbye." Makarov lowered the phone with a deep sigh and leaned back in his chair.

Rubbing at his temples tiredly he groaned, "I'm getting too old for this job." If he received another call about more money the guild owed for damages he was going to pull out what was left of his hair.

"That hasn't stopped you from continuing to refuse retirement." Mirajane placed a steaming cup of tea on his desk with a smile.

"Oh, Mirajane! Your undeniable beauty is a welcome reprieve for this old man's aging heart," he cried, "How is our new guest fitting in?"

She hummed, "Besides this morning's incident, Lucy's taken her new position fairly well. She has a strong spirit; not many can claim to have remained….mentally intact after the events she's gone through. She's already adamant about joining the guild and becoming a full-fledged member, though I would advise against granting her request so soon." She frowned before continuing, "Wendy has already shown her a majority of the town and her quarters. They're both having lunch in the guildhall now, and Natsu has mysteriously disappeared for the moment."

Makarov nodded in understanding. "That boy is going to be the death of me," he sighed.

* * *

"I'M HOME!" Natsu entered the guild with a mighty roar. His family threw him greetings left and right as he made his way to the bar, but not before catching sight of a familiar blonde head seated at one of the tables. With a quick detour, he was weaving his way around flying people and tables towards where he could see Lucy and Wendy each munching on slices of sandwiches.

Plucking a slice from Wendy's plate, Natsu flopped onto the bench across from them. "Yo! Miss me?"

Lucy looked shocked to see him, slight panic reflecting in her eyes before it morphed into relief. The latter made him preen in happiness and he smiled wider.

"Natsu!" Wendy scolded him for stealing her sandwich. Natsu plopped the rest of the food into his mouth and swallowed with a loud belch to spite her, and smirked at her appalled expression. Next to her, Lucy covered her mouth, attempting to disguise her giggles as a sudden coughing fit. The attempt was in vain but Natsu didn't bother to comment on it, not wanting to put her under the spotlight.

"Whatcha guys talking about?" He asked instead.

"Lucy was asking about how she could join the guild," Wendy said with excitement.

Just like that, the light in Lucy's eyes dimmed and she seemed to wilt under the young girl's words, staring at the table like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

"That's awesome!" He exclaimed, hoping to bring her spirits up once more. "Once Gramps gives you the go-ahead, let's be partners! I know how to get all the awesome jobs, so you got nothing to worry about."

Lucy merely nodded with a quiet "yeah" while Wendy shot him a quizzical look.

Natsu merely waved the girl off. Missions allowed him to search for Igneel and he couldn't afford to have a partner slow down his quest for the large dire wolf — other than Happy. Partners took communication and time. He was the type of person that was always on the go: take one mission, search, come back, rest for a day, and repeat. At least, that's what Wendy had thought.

Wendy curiously peered up at the blonde next to her, wondering how Lucy had brought about this change in who she considered her older brother.

"How did your errand go?" Lucy silently asked.

Natsu perked at the question and smiled a wide-grin smile. "Great! Nothing I couldn't handle. Just a quick errand." He was purposefully being cryptic but the blonde didn't seem to mind or question it as Mira joined them at their table.

"Hello, Lucy. Wendy, Natsu," she greeted before focusing her attention on Lucy. "While enrollment to begin the process of obtaining guild membership would normally be done by myself, the master would like to have a word with you before you are allowed to participate, Lucy since your circumstance is so unique," she said.

"R-right." Lucy hastily stood from her seat.

Mira frowned and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Don't feel rushed in wanting to join the guild. The most important thing you should be doing right now is learning to adjust."

"N-no!" she said hastily with a shake of her head. "I want to join the guild."

Mira's frown deepened and she asked, "Lucy, are you sure you're alright?"

"Yeah...fine." Natsu frowned at her meek response but remained silent.

Mirajane eyed the younger woman with another critical glance before smiling softly. "Alright. This way."

When both women were out of sight, Wendy sighed, "I don't think Lucy's adjusting well to Fairy Tail."

"I know how she feels," Natsu said absentmindedly.

"You would, wouldn't you?"

"_Natsu! Natsu, stop! You're scaring me!" A small Wendy screamed._

_The dark-furred wolf ignored her and continued to scratch and claw at the invisible shield. The smell of singed fur saturated the air and blood began to stain the barrier as the wolf's nails filed down to skin. Frustrated growls left the dark-colored beast and he paced in front of the border once, twice, before sitting down on his hindquarters, waiting. _

_This happened so often it was routine. He had turned up on Porlyusica's doorsteps injured beyond belief so often that he just gave up going, not wanting to endure another beating and scolding by the medic, Makarov, and his friends afterward. It wasn't like his wounds didn't heal on their own, it just took longer, which meant he had to wait before he could attempt to escape again for longer than he would have liked. _

_Wendy, who had been one of the first to catch on to his bad habit, found a way to intercept him before he went into hiding and licked his wounds. It wasn't a sanitary method of healing, she had said. _

_This time was much worse than the other times she had sought him out. Blood dripped from his maw and paws, and burns across his body had shed fur and peeled away at his skin to display bloody muscle and tissue underneath. Being a rising healer with just the bare knowledge of healing magic, Wendy fought hard to not dive behind a bush and empty her stomach at the image Natsu made. _

_It wasn't supposed to be this bad. The worst she had ever had to heal was minor burns and the occasional bruise; never anything like _this.

_And he didn't even care! Sitting there, waiting for her to heal him just so that he could hurt himself again! He didn't care how much this affected her or how unhealthy this was! He didn't care!_

"_No," She rasped. Natsu tilted his head in confusion, growling slightly in impatience. "NO!" She screamed, "I'm not going to help you hurt yourself! Igneel wouldn't want you doing this, either! If you're going to just keep hurting yourself this way then you should deal with the pain that comes with it!" With tears in her eyes and her heart, she turned and ran._

Wendy ducked her head in shame. It had happened a long time ago but she still felt guilty for reminding Natsu of his past mistakes.

A rough hand tousled her hair. "I really was an idiot back then, wasn't I?" Natsu playfully leaned his weight against Wendy's head and she slapped his arm in response.

"Nah, some might argue that you still are," Wendy chortled.

"Hey!" The playful chokehold Natsu captured her in didn't stop Wendy's bright squeals of laughter from filling the guild and his heart.

* * *

"I want to join the guild."

She said it with as much conviction as she could muster, hoping that the confidence in her voice might convince her of her resolve as well.

Makarov flashed her a wide grin. "That's great news, my dear. I'm sure Fairy Tail will be thrilled to have you. All future members must pass an evaluation before becoming full-time members, as I'm sure you have been told. However, because of your situation, I would like to request that you allow Gray, Gajeel, and Levy to assist you in becoming more comfortable with your new abilities before attempting the assessment."

Lucy's nose wrinkled at hearing Gray's name and asked instead, "How long until I can take this assessment?"

"As long as it takes for your mentors to approve your capabilities of handling yourself in the field."

She frowned at the thought of possibly never earning her guild mark before peering at the old guild master curiously. "You're not going to tell me it's too soon to join?"

"Should I?"

Lucy shrugged helplessly. "It's just… Mirajane…"

"Ah. Our resident den mother some would say. Mirajane is wise beyond her years and has room in her heart for everyone. She means well. But, no. If I have learned anything in the past few years it is that you cannot cage a bird who dreams of flight. You can only hope that, while they might fall along the way, you'll be there to help lift them up when they need you," Makarov's eyes aged in that instant, gazing out to something only he knew the details of. "Some are unfortunately more fiery than others," he chuckled.

Lucy thought back to Natsu's excitement of wanting to be partners and Wendy's words back at the yurt but then thought about the people of Magnolia and everything she was forced to leave behind. "I'm breaking out of this cage," she said firmly.

A smile graced his old features as Makarov nodded, not at all insulted by her referencing Fairy Tail as a 'cage'. "Then fly, Lucy. Fly as high and as far as you dare to go."

She nodded, partially shocked with the understanding in which the guild master took her words, and turned for the door.

He was still smiling even as a new voice from the corner said, "You sure got your hands full."

"Mest," Makarov greeted, "How much paperwork has the Council come to unload on my desk now?"

A dark-haired man with a double-crossed scar stepped out from the shadows, the Council's insignia stitched into his white cloak and nodded towards the closed office door. "A new recruit? The Council hasn't received any new membership forms."

"Lucy is still in training. Her registration papers will be handed in if she passes her assessment exam as is traditional for all guilds and members," Makarov stated diplomatically.

As the Council provided guilds with paid missions, they also archived information of all the "employees" they hired. If a member carried their guild's mark, information on everything from birth certificates to supernatural classification was recorded within the Council Archives. No one was exempt.

Mest hummed as he circled the tiny office. "Have you heard of the Magnolia incident? The Council has begun to repopulate the area. From what we understand, Tartaros was in the area."

"Yes," Makarov agreed, "Quite sad what happened. Tartaros is becoming bolder by the minute, but that's not really what you came to talk to me about was it?" Makarov no longer wished to be baited and cut to the chase.

"I'd be careful with who you affiliate yourself with, Makarov. Whispers of Zeref's name have only grown louder and his following grows with it. The stiffs at the Council won't admit it but they're scared, and they're looking to tie up any loose ends." Mest finally turned to face Makarov. "Just watch your back. Lullaby has gone missing."

Makarov barely had the chance to blink before he was finally left alone in his office, brows furrowed deeply in worry.

* * *

After thanking Wendy for her hospitality and bidding her goodnight, Lucy allowed the entrance curtain to fall close before sinking to her heels, clutching her head and attempting to take deep, steady breaths.

The urge to cry out in frustration tugged at her mind and when she felt a scream begin to crawl up her throat she bit down on her lip, tampering it. What came out instead was a hoarse choke.

The meeting with Makarov had not gone exactly as she had hoped. While the guild master's reasoning had been sound, being denied immediate membership was frustrating. However, she found herself grateful for not being denied the chance at membership at all.

Per Makarov's request, she had enlisted the help of Natsu and Wendy to find and request the assistance of her mentors: Levy, Gajeel, and Gray. The former two had easily agreed to train her, the long-haired vampire, however, had required a bit of persuasion from the blue-haired witch but accepted, nonetheless. Gray was much more disconcerting. While Natsu complained and whined about not being able to overlook her adjustment, Gray had rolled his eyes and eventually caved if only to get under the other werewolf's skin of being able to do something he couldn't. He had done so with great reluctance and arrogance.

While it was no surprise that the werewolf seemed to hold a strong dislike for her, Lucy didn't particularly feel the need to care. She didn't need him to like her, just to teach her what she needed to know to pass her assessment. That was it.

Forgoing a shower, Lucy climbed up to her loft bed on shaky legs. She was too emotionally and physically exhausted to think about trying to do anything but sleep. As she pulled herself up the rest of the way, she almost fell right off at the sight of a familiar violin and bow resting on her pillow. Scurrying across the bed on her hands and knees, Lucy trembled as she brought the violin up to cradle against her chest, running her hands lovingly across each star and constellation carved into the wood.

A choked laugh escaped her as a familiar heat burned behind her eyes and blurred her vision. Unbridled joy filled her core at having a piece of her home with her and she continued to silently laugh and cry as she rocked back and forth. Lucy had been among unfamiliar places and people for what felt like days. Her own body was unfamiliar to her now, her present physiology making her feel like she had been turned inside out but now, she had regained a piece of herself. A piece of her soul.

She coddled the violin like it was a newborn, surveying it for any damage or imperfections. Counting off each individual star and speck in her mind, she frowned when her fingers came across smooth wood where the constellation of Aries the Ram had once been.

Lucy didn't have long to dwell on it when her ears picked up the light clacking of clawed feet on the outdoor patio. The moonlight from outside reflected a large shadow across the curtained opening and Lucy held her breath in fear. The vibrations of her pounding heart could be felt through the wood of the violin with how tightly she was clutching it to her chest. For a long second, neither she nor the creature moved, until its shadow began to shrink into itself as it nudged aside the entrance, looking to gain entry.

Lucy cursed Fairy Tail's incompetence of installing proper doors that actually _locked _and searched the interior for an exit or a weapon. However, she was much too terrified to do anything but hug the instrument in her arms for comfort, much less wield a weapon.

A dark nose was the first thing to push into the room, closely followed by a black snout and head. The wolf roved its head around the interior, stiffening when he made eye-contact with her. For the second time that night, Lucy felt her heart burst with joy at the sight of those familiar features.

"Coal."

He was fast to back out of the tent.

"W-wait!" She cried. Placing her violin down, she hurried down the ladder, tripping on one of the rungs and landing on her side painfully. "Coal, wait! Please! It's me! Lucy!"

The dark shadow did not reappear and she curled into a ball on the floor. "Please. Please, don't leave me alone." She couldn't hold it in any longer. A sob burst out from within her.

She must have looked so pathetic at that moment, laying on the floor in a blubbering mess over some wolf, and yet she couldn't help wishing the past week had never happened. She wished her life hadn't become what it was now. She wished she didn't have to take a stupid test just to be allowed the chance to go home. She wished Levy had never found Coal and taken him away. And a part of her wished Coal had run and stayed away that first time so she wouldn't have to suffer through the pain of someone leaving her again.

Light padding once again approached and entered the room and a large, furred body slowly crept over to her fetal form, situating itself on the floor at her back. Lucy wordlessly turned on her side and hugged the wolf tight, soaking up the heat he provided like a sponge. Rubbing her cheek against him, she inhaled deeply and allowed his scent to wash over her.

Firewood smoke.

And just like that, the moment was shattered and dread filled her with cold realization. She _knew_ that scent. Pink hair flashed behind her eyes and she shook her head roughly to dispel it.

"No!" Lucy tightened her hold around Na-_Coal_. She shut her eyes firmly and shook the images of a wide grin and onyx eyes from her mind. The smallest amount of peace she had found was slipping right through her fingers.

"Please," she cried hoarsely, "Let me pretend. Just for tonight. _Please_."

_Let me pretend everything was just a bad dream._

Coal didn't struggle to escape her and Lucy quickly cleared her throat roughly before he could change his mind.

"_Lay down your head and I'll sing you a lullaby_

_Back to the years of loo-li-lai-lay_

_And I'll sing you to sleep and I'll sing you tomorrow_

_Bless you with love for the road that you go"_

Voice cracking at every turn, Lucy pushed on, stopping only when the song was finished and she had lulled herself to sleep. Troubled thoughts temporarily purged from her mind.

* * *

He hadn't meant to be caught checking up on her. A selfish part of himself had wanted to know if she had liked the gift he had brought back for her but seeing her this way because of him — because of what his current form meant to her — hurt worse than one of Erza's punches. He was such an idiot.

Even as Lucy sang now he felt ashamed for thinking her melodic voice was still the most beautiful sound he had ever heard, even in its anguished stated. Her magic seeped off of her in slow, lazy waves and smelled of the salt of her tears mingled with what he had come to associate her magic with: stardust.

It was difficult to form an explanation of what stardust actually smelled like; it was a wide grassy plain that he could tumble through and never tire for ages. It was the fresh smell of new rain and dewy honeycombs but, more than that, it was the vastness of a clear night sky illuminated only by the stars and the natural beauty of the world beyond they resided in. The smell of Lucy's magic took him to that unbelievably magical place.

And in a blink of an eye, he was back, lying on the floor of Lucy's yurt and cushioned beneath the now sleeping blonde. Turning his head as much as he could with Lucy's arms wrapped around his neck, Natsu saw the blonde's upper half was awkwardly propped against his side, the rest of her body splayed out on the floor. Natsu rotated on his side carefully so that the blonde would be lying comfortably on the carpeted floor beneath them with his larger form wrapped around her.

They were so alike in so many ways, he thought. Natsu could understand the loss of a parent — a home — and the desire to cling to anything familiar when surrounded by unfamiliar surroundings. He pictured his scaled scarf that was more than likely now possessively nestled beneath a blue cat. He and Lucy both held mementos from individuals of their past that they clung to, and seeing her struggle so like himself years ago motivated him that much more to help her let go and accept this new part of herself. Even if he had yet to do as much, himself.

* * *

**See you in the next chapter!**


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